Shadows of Time
by DarkGodAkito
Summary: After an intruder breaks into the Warehouse's Bronze Sector and steals two past agents, the team is shocked to rediscover pieces of Helena's past that were thought to be dead and buried. Myka/HG established.
1. All That Glimmers Is Not Bronze

**Shadows of Time**

Warehouse 13 fanfiction

Rated: T

Summery: _After an intruder breaks into the Warehouse's Bronze Sector and steals two past agents, the team is shocked to rediscover pieces of Helena's past that were thought to be dead and buried.** Myka/HG established.**_

Got the idea for this while watching the episodes "3...2...1", "Buried", and "Reset" and entertaining a "What if?" scenario. Reviews are much appreciated. I try to keep things as canon as possible, but have taken a few liberties at certain points. This story is already mostly finished, so I will update it every few days.

**Chapter 1: All That Glimmers Is Not Bronze**

_London, 1912_

_Inside Warehouse 12_

The dimly lit corridors of Warehouse 12 were quiet in the late hours of the night as 2 shadowed figures whispered to one another.

One wore a light brown robe and moved with surprising speed, considering he used a walking stick. The other wore a velvet cloak with its hood up, hiding its wearer's face in shadows. The air was tense as they passed through the seemingly endless hallways.

Items of all shapes and sizes lined the shelves from wall to wall. In the distance, the dim lighting gleamed off of a massive door crafted from bronze.

"You're absolutely sure this is what you wish to do?"

"Yes. I believe a more appropriate question would be are _you_ quite sure, Sir? You will be left behind to accept the consequences, afterall. Are you quite certain you wish to aid me in this venture?" the hooded figure asked.

The figure holding the worn down walking stick paused and glanced at his companion, chuckling, "Do not worry for my sake. I am old; there is little the Regents could do to me now. I believe in your cause, and so shall offer my assistance. However, there will be no turning back. Are you strong enough to face what lies ahead? You may find that the future may not be safe." he said, giving one final chance to back down.

"_Strength is the outcome of need; security sets a premium on feebleness._" the cloaked figure quoted easily, "I know it shall be trying, and I am sure this is my path. I need to do this. Please, let us continue before the Regents intervene. There may be little they could do to you, but we both are aware that there is a great deal they could do to me. And I have a feeling it wouldn't be anything quite as pleasant as inventory."

"Very well then."

The figures paused as they reached their destination. The large bronze door was opened with a creak that seemed to echo through the entire Warehouse.

Inside, the lighting was just as dim and was reflected off of many bronze statues that seemed to encircle a large metal chamber.

The statues were all of people, from every age, height, and gender. Almost all of them were in the same pose; with both arms stretched above their heads at right angles.

The two figures entered the room silently, not bothering to close the door just yet. The man with the cane went to the control panel on the far wall while the cloaked figure approached one of the bronze statues.

The statue was of an elegant looking woman with her hair done up in a fancy bun. Her bronze eyes saw nothing anymore as they stared ahead.

"We _will_ see eachother again." the figure said quietly, reaching out to lightly touch the statue's cheek.

Turning away, the cloaked person looked over to its companion and asked, "Are we ready, Caturanga?"

Caturanga gave a slight nod, "I believe so. Good luck in your journey. I hope you find what you are looking for."

* * *

_South Dakota, Present Day_

_Inside Warehouse 13_

Claudia sighed, typing away as she did various checks around the Warehouse computer systems. They hadn't had a ping in almost a week and everyone was bored and getting fed up.

Pete, Myka, Helena, and Steve were all on the ground floor catching up on the inventory they'd been neglecting. Artie was off at a conference with Mrs. Frederic and the Regents, and the young tech wiz was completely out of things to do.

Claudia stood and walked outside, needing to get some fresh air. She figured she'd done all the checks Artie wanted, so he wouldn't be too upset if he caught her having a break. He was due back any time now, so the quiet would soon be shattered at least. Even though she wasn't sure if having Artie barking orders was any better.

Just as she was about to reach the door, an alarm sounded. Claudia froze for a second before turning and running back to the computers to check what was going on.

The rest of the team came running into the office just then.

"Claud, what is it? We were on our way back when we heard the alarms." Myka said, looking over the younger girl's shoulder at the computers.

"Yeah, and I just got a wicked bad vibe too." Pete added.

His vibes were almost down to a science by now, so they knew something bad was happening somewhere.

"There's some type of disturbance in the Bronze Sector." Claudia said after a quick check. She pulled up the security feed of that area and gasped in shock.

On the screen there was a dark figure wearing a mask and black cloak standing in front of one of the statues, or rather what looked like 2 statues as one, as if two people had been bronzed together.

"Intruder alert!" Claudia gasped, hitting a silent alarm that would alert Mrs. Frederic.

Without wasting time, Helena, Pete, and Myka left the office with their Teslas to confront the intruder.

Steve stayed with Claudia in case she needed anything. With Artie gone the Warehouse seemed more exposed, and the presence of an intruder was highly unsettling.

"Think we should call Artie?" Steve asked, looking at Claudia.

Claudia hesitated, and then nodded, "Yeah, go ahead Jinksie."

Steve nodded and took out his Farnsworth, tuning it to Artie's signal before pushing the button.

Claudia watched the security feed closely, drowning out the sounds of Artie's grumpy ranting. Why were there two people Bronzed together? That in itself was strange, but more importantly how had someone broken into the Warehouse undetected? The Bronze Sector wasn't exactly in a convenient location.

Steve closed the Farnsworth with a sigh, "He's on his way."

Claudia nodded, still keeping an eye on the security feed. Suddenly the feed went fuzzy, and when it came back into focus both the intruder and the two bronze statues were gone. Claudia blinked, taking out her own Farnsworth to call Myka.

The older agent answered the call, "Hey Claud, we're almost to the Bronze Sector."

"Be careful Mykes, I lost the guy. He musta messed with my feed somehow; I don't know where he went." Claudia said, quickly flipping through other nearby security feeds to try to find the phantom intruder.

Myka closed the Farnsworth and relayed the message to Pete and Helena. When they reached the Bronze Sector, they took extra caution but there was no one there besides the statues.

"Guys look at this." Myka said, kneeling to the floor.

There were fresh drag marks across the floor, leading from the rows of statues towards the Bronzer itself, but they didn't quite reach the device.

Pete kept an eye open around them while Helena went over to the Bronzer's control panel. She was still fascinated by the touch screen, but for once didn't focus too much on the technology that had only been science fiction in her day.

"According to the records, no one has been de-bronzed since… well, me." Helena said, looking through the on-screen records for recent activity.

"Ok so they didn't get the chance to de-bronze whoever it was they were after, now all we have to do is figure out who it is they were trying to de-bronze in the first place." Myka said.

"That sentence was rather redundant, darling." Helena said, turning away from the Bronzer's controls.

She didn't look at the large metal cylinder, still secretly having nightmares about her own time in her metal coat. She'd never admit it to anyone, except maybe Myka, but the device still scared her terribly even after having been reawakened for several years.

Myka wisely chose not to acknowledge the Englishwoman's comment, instead trying to follow the drag marks to the statues origin.

"Ok so how'd they even get in here?" Pete said, changing the focus of the conversation, "I mean, I know this place isn't exactly airtight but still…."

"They had to have used an artifact to bypass the security systems. The alarm probably only tripped after they tried to move whoever it was they were after." Myka guessed, recalling the extra security measures placed on the Bronze Sector after Helena had been let out.

The three searched the nearby corridors of the Warehouse, but found nothing else out of place. Myka's Farnsworth buzzed in her pocket. She took it out and opened it, seeing Artie's face fill the black and white display. He barked a quick order to get back to his office before slamming the device closed.

"He didn't even say goodbye." Pete said, knowing that it wasn't a good sign. Artie was always abrupt and barking orders, but by now everyone knew the difference between regular grumpy Artie and extra grumpy Artie.

With nothing else to go on, the three agents made their way back to the office.


	2. Ripples in Time

Thank's so much to everyone who took the time to review and favorite this :) Another short chapter for yall. Don't worry, they wont all be short ;P [Chapter 5 is wicked long LOL]

The story so far: A mysterious cloaked figure has broken into the Warehouse and stolen two people out of the Bronze Sector, though their motives for doing so have yet to be made clear.

Also I should probably mention that this story will contain spoilers up through season 3 [I don't _think_ there's anything from season 4 in this story]

As always, reviews are love 8D And now on with the story!

**Chapter 2: Ripples in Time**

When Myka, Pete, and Helena got back to the office, Artie was at the computers alongside Claudia, looking far grumpier than normal. He was going over the tape of the intruder before he or she had vanished.

"Ya think he's still somewhere in the Warehouse? I mean this place is huge." Claudia said.

"No." a familiar voice said calmly from behind everyone as Mrs. Frederic appeared, making all of the agents jump.

"Geeze Mrs. F, ya know one of these days someone's gonna have a heart attack." Claudia said, putting her hand over her racing heart, though in the back of her mind she wondered if she'd someday be scaring agents the same way.

Afterall, she was still slated to become the next Warehouse Caretaker, and though it had come as a shock at first, the redheaded youth had slowly come to accept the responsibility being handed to her.

"Very likely, Ms. Donovan." Mrs. Frederic said, reading everyone's minds as usual. She calmly approached the computers before looking towards the door that led out into the Warehouse, "There is no one in the Warehouse anymore." she muttered, "I expect this matter to be resolved quickly. We cannot stay so vulnerable."

Artie nodded, turning back to the computers, "He wasn't sensed coming in, maybe a teleportation artifact, or something working with portals or wormholes… no no no not wormholes, more likely teleportation of some kind. It's not easy to haul a bronzed individual around, let alone two." he muttered, half to himself.

Turning back to Mrs. Frederic, he asked, "Mrs. Frederic is it possible to de-bronze someone without using our Bronzer?"

Mrs. Frederic was silent for several seconds before concluding, "It might be possible to build a Bronzer, given enough time, money, and knowledge of how they work. If this person knows enough to be able to enter into this facility undetected, we can assume they have intimate knowledge of this Warehouse and the technology within it. Have you discovered who they have stolen yet?"

"On it, but its taking time. Looking at this, it looks like an older guy and a younger girl were bronzed together." Claudia said, pulling up a still frame of the security feed, "I didn't even know we bronzed two people together."

"We don't, usually." Artie said, "The practice of bronzing two people at the same time was developed in the early 1400's for a particularly cruel pair of conjoined twins that couldn't be separated without causing their deaths. If possible we try to bronze people individually though, to keep the wicked people separate from the other wicked people."

Helena stared at the picture for a moment, "Claudia, darling, could you get a better image of the man's face?" she asked, sensing familiarity in what she saw. It surely couldn't be him, could it?

"Yeah, sure H.G." Claudia said, typing something into the keyboard as she zoomed in on the image and cleared up some of the fuzzy distortion until the faces of both bronzed people were clear and sharp.

Helena gasped softly to herself, "I believe I know that man." she said to the others.

"Seriously? Who is it?" Claudia asked, ready to pull up files.

"His name is William Wolcott. He was an agent of Warehouse 12, and my old partner." Helena said, "Mrs. Frederic is there…" she started asking, but the old woman had vanished. "Right then… Yes I am sure it's him." she said, looking back to the picture.

"Great, another psychopath who's gonna try to kill us with a trident?" Pete asked, but regretted the remark as Helena shot him a seething glare. The jab was uncalled for, and she didn't appreciate that being brought up again after she'd worked so hard to try to prove that she had truly become a good agent again.

Myka intervened before someone got hurt, putting a comforting hand on Helena's shoulder. Nothing could soothe the Englishwoman's temper quite like Myka could. Helena took a deep calming breath, regaining control of herself as she looked into the bright jade eyes of her girlfriend.

"Helena, tell us more about this man, is he dangerous? Why would he be in the Bronze Sector?" Myka prompted.

"I have no idea." Helena said honestly, "The likelihood of Mr. Wolcott breaking any rules would be about as likely as you doing so, darling."

"I break rules… sometimes…" Myka argued weakly, though she caught Steve's smirk.

He didn't bother calling her on the lie since it was so glaringly obvious. Myka was practically textbook teachers pet in every situation, no matter what.

"So do you know the girl?" Pete asked Helena, trying to get her to forget about what he had said.

Helena looked at the photo more closely for a minute, but shook her head, "No, I'm afraid that girl is not someone I have met before."

She lightly reached out to touch the screen, ignoring Claudia's protests about doing so, "Oh Wolly, just what have you done since I left you?" she murmured.

Myka cleared her throat at that comment, "S-So I take it you and this Wolcott were close?" she asked, a faint blush tingeing her cheeks. Though she had been dating the older woman for over a year now, she couldn't help but feel a bit uneasy about the possible reappearance of a past lover.

Helena smiled and nodded, "Indeed, we were partners for many years within the walls of Warehouse 12. He was my most trusted friend, very much like a little brother in many ways, though he was far kinder towards me than Charles was." she said, reminiscing in her memories, "I did love to tease him and mislead him though, he always believed every single word I said. At one point I had him absolutely convinced that I'd been intimate with every man in London. Oh Wolly, the poor fool. If we get the chance to speak again I really should rectify that lie." she laughed.

Myka smiled, the sound of the Time Traveler's laughter always a pleasing sound to her. She was happy to hear that Helena wasn't _quite_ as scandalous as she liked others to believe, and from the sounds of it she and William shared a bond very similar to the one shared by Myka and Pete. Close enough to be makeshift siblings but nothing more.

Claudia pulled up the file, looking it over, "Ok, apparently William Wolcott was bronzed in 1912, though there is no listed reason why. No mention of the girl, the files all seem to have been wiped of her name. I saw mention that William was put in charge of raising a child in 1901, but these files have been obviously edited to remove traces of that child's name." she reported, "I don't even know if the kid has anything to do with anything. I suppose I could try to get the original files back."

"Try." Artie commanded, standing, "In the meantime, you pile together every shred of intel on this Wolcott." he ordered Helena as he made his way towards the door.

"Artie where are you goin?" Pete asked.

"To check on something." Artie muttered as he made his way down to the Warehouse ground floor. Trailer stood up from where he'd been sleeping and followed his master.

"No no, you stay." Artie said to the dog.

Trailer whined but did as he was told and returned to his bed.

Myka cleared some space on and around the cluttered table in the office, sitting down. She took out a pad and motioned for Helena to sit as well, "Let's make some notes about William to look over with everyone later. Tell me everything you remember about him." she suggested.

Helena sat and nodded, "Righty-ho then… let's see… we met the first time in the late summer of 1888, just weeks before the Whitechapel Murders…"

* * *

Well there we have it, one of our mystery agents has been revealed! Mr. Wolcott debuted in Season 3 Episode 5: "3...2...1". I thought that he and Helena had an interesting brother/sister relationship similar to Pete and Myka's, and so wanted to explore that a bit. I'm afraid you'll have to wait a bit to see who our other mystery guest is though, and to see how they ended up bronzed! Reviews are love and make me happy, peeps!

-Akito


	3. Helena's Regret

Another chapter up, woot! I'm almost finished with this story on my end, it's shaping up to be 11 chapters overall :) And if this story gets enough support I was playing around with an idea for a sequel of sorts. We'll see!

The story so far: One of the missing agents has been identified as Helena's former partner from Warehouse 12, but why was he stolen, and who else do they have?

Onward march!

**Chapter 3: Helena's Regret**

By evening, no news had been found concerning the phantom intruder. The Warehouse agents had all stayed late to ensure that the Warehouse was secure. The computer systems had confirmed that no artifact was missing, and that the only things taken were the two bronzed agents.

When the agents returned to Leena's for the night, the innkeeper already had a hot meal ready and waiting for them, as if she knew exactly when they'd arrive. After their usual dinner of arguing and Pete trying to steal all the rolls, the agents tried to relax for what little evening they had left.

Myka and Helena went to sit on the sofa, where Dickens immediately claimed Helena's lap. Myka chuckled as the Englishwoman sighed in annoyance, but proceeded to absentmindedly pet the cat's fluffy gray head. Dickens purred loudly in approval.

Myka smiled as she too started petting the cat's soft fur. He was soon fast asleep in complete contentment. Myka knew how displeased Helena had been at first to learn that she had been given a cat while she'd been trapped in the Janus Coin, and couldn't help but be proud of her girlfriend for continuing to shelter the animal now that Emily Lake was no longer.

Claudia slowly approached the two of them, holding something, "Hey, H.G.? Is this the person we'll be looking for?" she asked, offering an old photograph to her mentor.

She had remembered finding the old photo during the hunt for Joshua's Trumpet, having never gotten the chance to show Helena before she'd been sealed away in the Regents Prison again.

Helena took the photograph and smiled when she saw it. It was undoubtedly she and William side by side over 100 years ago.

Myka looked curiously at the photo, "Wow, I didn't know you used to wear your hair up like that." she said, smiling.

Helena smiled and nodded, "Oh yes darling, it was the norm for women of the age to wear very stylized hair, especially while out or in the company of others within the home. And yes, Claudia, that is indeed Mr. Wolcott. I believe this photo was taken in 1893, if I recall. We were stood just outside the doors to Warehouse 12 when one of our young apprentices came along. He was wandering around showing off his new camera. Wolly jokingly suggested he photograph the two of us, and so he did. Lovely picture really." she said, handing it back to the young redhead.

Claudia smiled and nodded, looking at the ancient photo. She'd kept it all this time since she liked how regal and powerful her mentor had looked even 100 years before. Helena really hadn't changed much in all that time.

It was no secret how much Claudia admired the Time Traveler for her power and her sharp mind, and how the Englishwoman was the only one who could really understand Claudia's passion for learning and inventing, which is why the two of them had unofficially adopted one another as mentor and apprentice.

"I bet you'd like to see him again, huh?" Claudia asked.

Helena hesitated, looking down at Dickens, whom was blissfully uncaring of everything as he slept.

"Yes, that would be lovely." she said after a minute, though her tone of voice gave away her doubts about her own statement.

Myka looked at Helena curiously, picking up on the subtle details of her lover's mood, "What's wrong?" she asked.

Claudia had sensed it too, sitting down in another chair as she looked at the old photograph again.

Helena was quiet for a moment, still absentmindedly petting her cat. It was a calming gesture, even if she didn't think very highly of the animal.

"Let us just say, the very last time Mr. Wolcott and I saw one another, it was not on friendly terms. I would very much like to see him again, though I'm afraid I do not know if he'd still hold that pathetic display of aggression against me." she said, looking at Myka, then at Claudia.

Myka lightly laid her hand over Helena's, intertwining their fingers, "Would you like to talk about it?" she asked calmly.

'Pathetic' was not a word the overly confident H.G. Wells often used to describe herself, and so Myka knew that the older woman was regretful about whatever had happened. The only other times she'd ever heard Helena use that word in such a way was when she was talking about what had happened in Warehouse 2 or what happened that next day in Yellowstone.

Helena was quiet for a moment longer before telling them what had happened that day so long ago.

* * *

_London, August 1900_

_Inside H.G. Wells' Home_

_A knock sounded at the door as Helena finished getting ready to go out. She wore her usual attire of a loose fitting man's shirt, jacket, loose tie, pants, fingerless gloves, and boots._

_She looked herself over in the mirror; fixing her hair and straightening the necklace she wore that held Christina's photo._

_The knock sounded again and she sighed, "The door _**is **_open Mr. Wolcott!" she snapped irritably._

_These days she always seemed to be in a foul mood, especially now that her Time Machine had failed to help her stop Christina from being murdered before her very eyes. Since then, anger and hatred were all she had left._

_The door opened, revealing a tall young man in a black suit and overcoat. He wore a distinctive hat._

_"What is it Wolly, another curiosity?" Helena asked, not bothering to give him more than a glance as she continued gathering her things._

_"No, actually. I was hoping we could talk." he said calmly, his blue eyes like chips of ice as he watched her cautiously._

_"Fine, do make it quick though." Helena muttered, stepping to walk past him, expecting him to follow her and talk as he normally did. What she didn't expect was his arm swiftly extending to connect with the doorframe with a loud slam, effectively blocking her way._

_Helena blinked, taken aback by the gesture, "Mr. Wolcott do you _**mind**_? I am rather in a rush." she said, glaring at him._

_The normally timid man usually backed away from her glare, but today he met it head on with one of equal fire._

_"I said we need to talk, you can make time." he all but growled._

_Helena blinked slowly, having never seen William look so angry and accusing. She narrowed her eyes dangerously but gave a curt nod, "Fine. What is it?" she asked, somehow still sounding polite even through her terrible mood._

_Somewhere in the back of her mind she knew it wasn't William's fault, and that she shouldn't be taking it out on him, but she could never seem to control her emotions these days and kept lashing out at everybody._

_William took a step forward, forcing Helena to step back into the room as he closed the door behind him in case Charles was about. Helena crossed her arms over her chest, meeting his eyes without the slightest trace of fear._

_She knew this man, and knew that he would never hurt her. And if he did try, she had every confidence that she could take him in a fight. Her kempo had been demonstrated in many fights before now, though she had hoped never to need to go to such extremes against her own partner and only friend._

_He held up a semi-charred piece of paper that displayed research and notes on the Minoan Trident, along with the believed locations of its two pieces and notes on the effects of using it at a volcanic location._

_"Would you mind explaining this, H.G.?" he said, getting right to the point._

_Helena blinked, surprised that part of her research had been left intact. She was sure she'd burnt every last piece of it, but then again she was forced to leave the room before the fire had consumed all of it. Was it possible the flames died down before everything had been swallowed up? She met his eyes evenly as her brilliant mind raced to conjure up a suitable lie._

_When she couldn't come up with anything fast enough, she settled for a challenge instead and said, "Are you trying to accuse me of something, Mr. Wolcott?"_

_William pursed his lips, narrowing his eyes slightly. He knew this woman far better than she liked to believe. He knew that she'd only said something like that because she couldn't figure out a good enough lie._

_Not that she could anyway; he always knew when she was lying. After witnessing her lie hundreds of times he knew the subtle details of her voice, face, and body language that would give it away to a trained eye. Not that she was aware of that, in any case._

_"No." he said after a moment, "But I am concerned, Helena. You're wounded and angry, I get that. However, finding out that you've been digging up information on a weapon of mass destruction without a reason to does set me a little on edge. I fear your grief over Christina has clouded your mind. Thoughts?" he challenged her right back._

_His tone was accusing, but he truly was concerned for his partner's mental health. She hadn't been the same person after that terrible day in 1899. At first she'd become obsessed with time travel, which was worrying enough, but this was even more so._

_Helena sighed and looked up at William, "I appreciate your concern, Wolly, and I understand you have every reason to be concerned. I know you are only trying to look out for me…" she said, her tone of voice changing from acidic annoyance to a tone of practiced kindness and sadness._

_He wasn't fooled though, continuing to stare at her challengingly. He had seen her use this trick a thousand times. If arguing wasn't working, try playing nice for a bit._

_William looked at her evenly, "You know Helena, a very kind and wise woman once said '_Sometimes, you have to step outside of the person you've been and remember the person you were meant to be. The person you want to be. The person you are'_." he said, using her own words against her, "Is this really who you want to become? Somebody driven by pain and sorrow and anger to the point of trying to manipulate her own friend?"_

_This time Helena said nothing, meeting his gaze evenly, trying to figure out how to best handle the situation. William sighed and stepped forward again, though this time Helena stood her ground and did not back up._

_"If you truly have gone mad, then I am the only thing in your way now, yes? Then I suppose you will have to force me to step aside, for if you do not, I will find a way to stop this insanity before it gets out of control." he said calmly, turning away, "I have not yet shared my findings with the old man. I think he will be very interested to learn what you've been up to when not rashly rushing through missions."_

* * *

Helena paused in her story, hesitation clear on her face. She continued to pet Dickens, looking down at the fluffy gray cat, though her gaze seemed distant. Myka and Claudia watched her quietly, Myka never letting go of the older woman's hand.

"So what happened? I mean, did he tell your boss or what?" Claudia asked after a minute, gently prompting her mentor to continue.

"I do not know if he ever did or not. If he did, Caturanga never mentioned it to my face. I'm afraid after that comment I truly lost myself for a moment and rendered him unconscious in a blind display of the very madness that had concerned him. That was the last time I ever laid eyes on Mr. Wolcott. After I'd obtained half of the Trident and hidden it on Christina's casket, I returned to Warehouse 12 where Caturanga told me that Wolly had taken an extended leave of absence, citing family issues. I was paired up with someone I had never worked with before, and a few months later allowed my clouded mind to act rashly to the point of his death. It was after that that I had made my request to be bronzed." Helena said quietly.

Claudia nodded, looking at her mentor. She knew that the woman had been through far worse than the rest of them in her extended life, but it still surprised her to hear just what Helena had done.

The future Caretaker bit her lip a bit, and then said, "I think he'd understand, if you guys got the chance to talk again today. It seems like you two were really tight friends, and I think he would be happy to see you back in your right mind."

Myka smiled at the young girl's kind words. Claudia always seemed so much more mature than others of her age, and seemed to always know what to say to help people out.

"I agree." Myka said, nodding, "I think he'd understand."

"Thank you." Helena said, "You are becoming quite wise, Claudia. Very mature for such a young woman. You shall surely attain even more brilliance as you grow older." she added as an afterthought.

Claudia's cheeks flushed pink at the unexpected praise from the woman she admired so much, "Oh! It's nothing, ya know. I-I mean your always telling me stuff like that s-so… erm… y-yeah. A-Anyway, it's getting late and I think we should be rested for tomorrow, so… see ya." she said, babbling a bit before making a quick exit up the stairs.

Myka laughed, "You did that on purpose, didn't you?"

Helena gave a sly grin, "Why whatever do you mean darling? I merely spoke the truth." she said, enjoying teasing her apprentice.

She then shifted slightly to lay her head on Myka's shoulder, ignoring Dickens' protesting at the movement, "Thank you for listening, Myka."

"Anytime." Myka said honestly.

She loved hearing stories of Helena's past, even the bad ones. She wanted to learn everything she could about the Time Traveler, and silently vowed to always be there to comfort her when recalling any painful or regretted experiences.

Helena looked at her, still wearing that sly smile that slowly dissolved into a devilish smirk as she whispered, "Come darling. Claudia is quite right, it is rather late. Let us move this conversation to bed…"

* * *

Before anyone asks, no we're not going into the M rating on this story LOL. Reviews are always love, peeps! :)

-Akito


	4. World's Collide

Greetings people! :) I'm glad to see people enjoying my tale.

Also thank's to _I Wear The Crown_ for unknowingly helping me with chapter 10, hehe! I was having some trouble with a part, and your comment gave me an entirely new idea for it that worked out even better xD So yeah LOL

The story so far: Helena confides in Myka and Claudia concerning a regretted experience between herself and William over 100 years ago. Meanwhile, the team still has no leads on who stole the bronzed agents, or why.

Onward!

**Chapter 4: World's Collide**

The morning came too quickly, as everyone got out of bed one by one by the sounds of Leena making breakfast. Artie and Claudia were the first ones down for their morning tradition of grumbling over who got the first cup of coffee.

Leena prepared Helena's tea off to the side, having learned a long time ago how to brew it exactly to the Victorian woman's standards.

Claudia glanced at Artie after they'd both woken up a bit and whispered, "I found part of a name for the girl that was stolen, but I need a bit more time to like, double triple check that it's right." she said.

Artie raised an eyebrow, "And why is that?" he sighed, thinking that Claudia was making a fuss over nothing. Claudia leaned over and whispered something into his ear, making sure no one else heard.

Artie's eyes widened in shock and he blinked slowly, "That's not possible." he muttered, keeping his voice down now as well.

"Yeah I know that, that's why I'm gonna keep searching and see if the name pops up anywhere else." Claudia said, sipping her coffee.

Leena didn't mind their whispering as she laid out plates with everyone's breakfast, all ready for when the others would be down.

Steve was the next one to appear, closely followed by everyone else. Claudia stood swiftly, "Hey Jinksie, gotta go check on something at the Warehouse, ya commin with?" she asked, giving him a look that said she needed to talk to him with no one else around.

"Uh, sure Claudia." he said, taking his plate with him as he followed her out the door.

Pete had jumped right into his food, and watched them leave with a raised eyebrow, "Nevh sheen her sho eagr to work." he said through a mouthful of food, oblivious to Myka and Helena's looks of disgust at his bad habit.

"In case you've forgotten, we had an _INTRUDER_ in the _WAREHOUSE_ yesterday; I'd **_EXPECT_** all of you to be eager to get to work!" Artie snapped at him over the morning paper.

* * *

"Sooo what's up?" Steve asked when they were out of earshot, setting his plate down in his lap as Claudia got her seatbelt on.

Claudia sighed, "Ok, I need a huge favor Jinksie. If anyone asks me if I found any information on the bronzed girl who was stolen, I am going to lie and I really need you to not call me on it. Can ya do that for me?"

Steve raised an eyebrow, "I guess, but why?"

"Because I found a partial name in the files… and I need to like triple quadruple check it before saying anything. Just trust me, if I tell them what I found and it turns out I'm wrong, it might cause major trouble." Claudia said, starting the SUV, "And before ya ask, Artie already knows. So just… trust me."

Steve nodded, "Ok, I'll keep in mind not to call you out." he promised.

"You're a wonder-twin." Claudia said, meaning it. At least there was one weight off her shoulders. Now she just had to shift the rest of the weights off with a long day of code breaking.

* * *

The day at the Warehouse went on slowly. There were still no pings, which in itself was highly unusual, but everyone had bigger things on their minds as they continued doing inventory. There had been no more mention of their phantom intruder or the two missing bronzed people.

Pete was sat in the office with Claudia, taking care of some manual filing. He was silently debating getting Timothy Leary's Glasses again to make things less boring, but figured that wouldn't be a good idea with how tightly strung Artie was at the minute. Even Claudia seemed tenser than usual as she kept combing through files on the computer.

"Do you have anything yet?" Artie asked as he walked into the room, closely followed by Trailer.

Claudia glanced at him, "Just what I told you about this morning." she said.

Artie nodded slowly, thinking.

"Only thing I don't get is why these two? I mean, H.G. said that this Wolcott guy isn't even dangerous. Wouldn't it make more sense to steal one of the super baddies?" Claudia asked.

"One would think, but bear in mind we know nothing about that girl. It could very well be one of the super villains that was taken that we have no records of." Arte said, sitting down at his desk, still troubled by who that girl might be. He had to admit though, if what Claudia found proved to be accurate then they would have cause to worry.

"Ya think?" Claudia wondered, "I mean she looks younger than me." she added, looking at the picture. The girl didn't look older than 19 or 20.

"Yes, and you single handedly hacked into the Warehouse, broke into the Warehouse, and kidnapped me." Artie said dryly.

"Point taken." Claudia said, rubbing the back of her head. She knew better than anyone that age was no indication of skill, so they would need to approach the girl with caution.

Artie's Farnsworth buzzed then. He opened it, seeing Leena on the other end.

"Artie, I think you guys should get back to the B&B." Leena said, looking uncertain. She seemed to be outside somewhere.

"Why, did something happen?" Artie asked.

"Sorta… someone came up in a fancy car, and then sped off. I looked outside, and came across a man unconscious on the ground, as if he'd just been thrown out of the car." she said, "I haven't moved him yet."

"That's troubling." Claudia said, raising an eyebrow.

"Leena can you show us this guy's face?" Artie asked.

"Yeah sure." Leena said, turning the Farnsworth around to show them the man.

Claudia blinked, "Artie, that's one of our missing bronzed people!"

"Yeah, but without the bronze. Call H.G." Artie said to Claudia. To Leena he added, "We'll be there soon, look after him but stay alert."

"On it." Leena smiled before the line went dead.

"Well now we know someone's got a Bronzer." Claudia said, walking towards the door that led out into the Warehouse. She stood on the balcony and picked up a megaphone that had been placed off to the side, knowing it could reach across the Warehouse as she called out, "Myka! H.G.! Get back here ASAP!"

Artie flinched at the loud sound, "You DO know they have Farnsworth's, right?"

"Yeah, I know. This way's more fun." Claudia said matter-of-factly, returning to her seat.

* * *

A short while later, the two summoned Agents came up the stairs to Artie's office, looking a bit flustered, as if they'd run the whole way back.

"What's up?" Myka asked when she caught her breath.

"You two get to Leena's ASAP, it seems Mr. Wolcott has just been delivered to our door unconscious." Artie said, looking troubled, "Pete, you take over their inventory in the meantime."

"Why do I gotta do it?" Pete asked, but flinched at Artie's glare.

"GO." Artie barked at him.

Pete nodded quickly and ran off. Helena moved towards the door, but hesitated. What if she couldn't make amends with William? She was rarely ever a woman of doubt or regret, but she blamed herself for William leaving Warehouse 12 until after she'd been bronzed.

She knew it was a lie when he'd told Caturanga that he had family issues, for he had no family that she was aware of. Both parents had died long ago, no siblings, no lovers, and no children. Any other time she would have been trying to find out where her partner had vanished to, but back then all her heart could focus on was pain, anger, misery, and madness.

"Helena?" Myka asked, noticing the distant look in the Time Traveler's deep brown eyes.

Helena knew that she should never have attacked him as she'd done, and even now couldn't place a solid reason for why she'd done it. She had known that Caturanga would have likely found out about her research sooner or later anyway, the man knew everything!

"Helena!" Myka said louder.

Helena blinked, snapping back to the present at the sound of Myka's voice.

"So sorry darling, I was simply entrapped within my thoughts. Come, let us go see what my dear Wolly has to say after living in a bronze shell for nearly as long as I had." she smiled, walking towards the door.

Myka followed her, waiting until they were outside and in the car before saying, "I know he'll understand, Helena."

Helena just gave a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes and said, "I hope you are right, darling."

* * *

Leena prepared a fresh batch of tea as she waited for her guest to come to consciousness. She figured that William would like his tea the same way Helena liked hers. She'd removed William's hat and had placed it on the coat-hanger near the door.

Leena smiled as the familiar black SUV pulled up into the driveway just as she'd finished pouring the tea for everyone. She felt more at ease after having seen William's aura. She couldn't sense any evil in him, but knew he'd likely be confused when he woke. She hoped seeing a familiar face would help put him at ease.

Myka and Helena waked into the door. Helena looked around the immediate area, pausing when her eyes fell upon the sleeping form of her oldest friend. He had certainly grown more since they'd last met.

Despite being only a few years younger than her, William always seemed to look no older than 25 on any given day. When they'd first met shortly after Helena had turned 22, she mistook him for a young teenager.

Now then, at a physical age she'd estimated to be around 42, he looked far older than any time before, and far thinner as well. Time had stopped being kind to the man after that day in the August of 1900 it seemed. Even through that though, he was undoubtedly still the very Wolcott she'd known so long ago.

Leena smiled from the doorway, watching Helena's aura shift from happy, to curious, to a shade of guilt, and then back to happiness again. She'd heard the story from the other night, and knew that their beloved Englishwoman had a lot to process since the realization she may be able to mend old sins and rekindle old friendship.

"Tea?" the innkeeper asked quietly.

This seemed to bring Helena back from her thoughts as she smiled, "Yes, thank you."

Myka sat in a nearby chair, "Do you think we should call Dr. Calder?" she asked.

"I'd be terribly surprised if Artie hasn't already." Helena said, sitting down with her cup of tea, "I do wonder how long Wolly will sleep for?" she mused as an afterthought.

"How long did it take you to recover from being de-bronzed?" Myka asked.

Helena didn't really like talking about it, but she answered the question properly because it was Myka who asked, "I was up on my feet and aware of things after only a few minutes, though I was terribly sensitive to light for a day or two. Any brand of light, weather it be real or manufactured, it did not matter. Looking at it for more than a moment made me feel violently ill and dizzy after being trapped in never-ending darkness for over 100 years." she said, "It was the same for eating or drinking. I could only stomach water and bland foods for a few days until I'd readjusted. Not to mention there was a horrid taste of metal in my mouth for days afterwards, making eating and drinking all the more unpleasant." she added, making a face of disgust at the memory.

"And yet you still managed to stick me and Pete to your ceiling." Myka said with a quiet chuckle. Thinking back on that now, they really had walked right into that trap, and she couldn't help but smile.

"I **_did_** try to tell you that the switch had nothing to do with the vest." Helena pointed out with a sly smirk.

"Yes, yes you did." Myka said, shaking her head at the memory. Looking back at William she frowned, "If you were at least awake and alert after a few minutes, I wonder why he's sleeping." she wondered.

"It is quite possible that whoever our phantom thief is had drugged poor William before delivering him to us, which tells us two things right off," Helena said, going into scientist mode, "First and foremost, they delivered him to us rather than the girl, so we can deduce that she is somehow of greater value to their plans, and secondly we can say that whoever we are dealing with knows us quite well and is confident enough to drive up to our doorstep in broad daylight to deliver Wolly to us."

Myka nodded, "Yeah, those are good points." she nodded, "Maybe they want to use William as a messenger to tell us about that girl. If she's important enough to be used as a villain or a bargaining chip then we must know her somehow."

"Quite right, darling." Helena nodded, sipping her tea now that it had cooled enough to drink, "It seems we shall not know the answers to these questions until our dear Mr. Wolcott comes to consciousness."

"Perhaps I could be of assistance in that matter."

Myka and Helena both jumped, causing Helena to curse loudly as she spilt hot tea on her hand and clothes.

"Mrs. Frederic." Myka acknowledged the Caretaker.

"_MUST_ you do that?!" Helena asked their boss, giving her a slight glare as she cleaned the tea up with a towel from the kitchen.

"Yes, Agent Wells." she said evenly, unfazed by the cursing or the glare.

The old woman walked over to the sofa and lightly put her hand on William's forehead, closing her eyes. After a few seconds, the pale Englishman's eyes shot open and he gasped.

Myka, Helena, and Leena all held back and watched as Mrs. Frederic stood again.

"Welcome back, Agent Wolcott."

* * *

Reviews are love peeps! Our other mystery guest will be revealed next chapter. Any guessed on who it is? :) Till next time!

-Akito


	5. William's Sin

Ahh the chapter everyone has been waiting for :) This chapter I believe is the longest in the entire tale and is VERY flashback heavy, as William and ?'s story is mostly told through William's flashbacks.

I apologies in advance if Caturanga seems a bit OOC. For some reason while writing him all I could think in my mind was Dumbledore O.o I have no idea why.

The story so far: William has been delivered to the B&B, but we're still one agent short. Can he shed any light on who she is, and why they were stolen?

And so without further ramblings...

**Chapter 5: William's Sin**

"I wish this reunion would have been under better circumstances." Mrs. Frederic said calmly as William closed his eyes to shut out the light and groaned.

"Where am I…?" he asked, his thoughts a scrambled mess as he tried to piece together how he'd ended up on a foreign sofa in an unknown place.

"You are at Leena's Bed and Breakfast, which is the home of all current agents of Warehouse 13. It is the late fall of the year is 2013. You have been out of commission for a very long time, Agent Wolcott." Mrs. Frederic told him evenly.

William kept his eyes closed, feeling a bit nauseated from the light in the room. Leena quickly went around the room and closed the blinds, dimming the light considerably.

William's eyes slowly opened, taking a minute to adjust. The dimmed light was still mildly uncomfortable, but not so much that he had to close his eyes.

Mrs. Frederic looked at Helena and nodded towards William, indicating that the author should speak.

Helena hesitated, but slowly walked over to her old friend, "Wolly…?" she said quietly.

When he saw her, he gasped, "My lord… Helena… Helena is that really you?" he whispered, shocked.

Helena smiled, "It really is, Wolly. It has been a very long time." she said, keeping a comfortable distance away from the sofa.

Just then, more cars pulled in as the other Warehouse agents returned to Leena's, all curious to see and meet this new Time Traveler.

"Dude why's it so dark in here?" Claudia asked as she walked in, turning a light on.

William gasped and yelled out sharply as pain seared through his skull. He covered his eyes with his hand and tried desperately not to be sick as his eyes were overloaded with the sharp light.

"Oh dude! Dude I am SO sorry!" Claudia said, shutting the light off again quickly as she realized what had happened. She remembered being told before that people who had been bronzed were horribly sensitive to light for awhile after being reawakened.

* * *

After a short while and after a few painkillers, everyone had gathered around to hear what their guest had to say.

William took a better look at Mrs. Frederic now that his eyes had readjusted to the dim light. He felt mildly uncomfortable being around so many people that he didn't know.

"Irene, yes?" he guessed.

Mrs. Frederic allowed a rare smile to grace her lips as she nodded, "You are correct, Agent Wolcott. You can call me Mrs. Frederic now. I believe I was quite young when we met."

"Woah. you two know eachother?" Pete asked, wide-eyed.

Mrs. Frederic nodded, "We have met. I became apprenticed to the former Warehouse Caretaker shortly before Warehouse 12 closed down and Warehouse 13 was opened."

William nodded, thinking back, "Yes, I believe we met just before…" he paused, "Wait a moment, there was a young girl with me, was there not? Is she safe? Where is she?" he asked suddenly, looking panicked as his memories slowly came back into order.

"We do not know where the girl is. Maybe you could start off by telling everyone exactly who she is, Agent Wolcott." Mrs. Frederic suggested.

William hesitated, absentmindedly fidgeting with his coat as he stayed silent for several minutes.

Helena slowly stood and cautiously sat beside William, "Relax, Mr. Wolcott. You are among fellow agents here." she said, trying to comfort her old friend.

William flinched slightly away from her, but did not get up, "Will you promise to keep your kempo to a minimum until after the whole story is told…?" he asked quietly.

Helena frowned, "Darling Wolly, why on Earth would I ever bring harm to you?" she asked, but instantly regretted the statement as she once again remembered their last encounter.

William sighed, steeling himself up before answering, "That girl…. is Christina…. your Christina." he said, not daring to look at Helena as a heavy silence settled over the room.

Helena blinked slowly, her mouth hanging open a bit as her mind blurred in shock. Surely she must have misunderstood. Her darling Christina, her only baby, was long since departed from this world. It was the very thing that had driven her over the edge into the abyss of madness, the very thing that had driven her grief-numbed mind to desire a world caked in ice, spinning onwards without a single human life.

"W-Wolly t-that's not… that cannot…. **_h-how_**?!" Helena finally managed to get out.

The normally sharp-tongued literary genius was far too overwhelmed with her racing thoughts to try to be eloquent for once as she tried to process what she'd just heard.

"….It seems your findings proved accurate." Artie said quietly to Claudia.

Helena looked at the redheaded youth with a new fire in her eyes, "You _knew_?!" she hissed.

Claudia visibly paled in fear and held both hands up, her eyes wide as she took in the look on her mentor's face, "I-I wanted to be sure!" she said quickly, "I came across a journal from somebody who worked at Warehouse 12 that mentioned the name _'C. I. Wells'_ and didn't want to say anything until I was absolutely sure! Please don't kill me!" she said, darting behind Steve.

Myka walked over to them and knelt next to Helena, lightly taking her hand, "Calm down sweetie. I know everyone here's shocked, but why don't we hear what William has to say?" she suggested.

Everyone could see the fire in Helena's eyes die down as Myka's calming presence soothed her.

The Time Traveler took a deep shuttering breath, "Forgive me, Claudia. I understand why you'd want to be sure." she said, looking at her apprentice apologetically.

Claudia nodded and sighed in relief, thankful that Myka was around. She was the only one who had the power to keep Helena from doing _too_ many rash things with her extreme temper.

Turning back to William, Helena gently urged the younger (or older now?) man to tell his story.

William nodded, "Well… I suppose this story starts not long after you'd attacked me that time in your bedroom, just after I'd confronted you about research concerning the Minoan Trident…"

* * *

_London, early August 1900_

_Inside Warehouse 12_

_William sighed, rubbing his neck that still throbbed where he'd been struck by Helena's deadly kempo. _

_He knew full well that she could have easily killed him if she'd wanted to, but she didn't. He hoped that it was a good sign, that she wasn't entirely off the edge just yet. _

_Though, that attack had also told him that his partner was beyond reason, and he knew only one thing could save her now. He sighed, looking down at his notes. _

_What he was considering was going against every rule of the Warehouse, but he had no choice. He would do anything to set things right, no matter the cost to him._

_"Studying hard, Agent Wolcott?" a familiar voice asked._

_William turned to see Caturanga, shuffling his papers together and out of sight as he did, "Y-Yes, Sir. I-I was merely…"_

_Caturanga held his hand up, "I know what you were up to, Agent Wolcott, and I'm afraid I must tell you that resurrection is a dangerous practice and _always_ comes at a steep price."_

_"I-I know that, Sir." William said, looking at the old man, "I am willing to pay that price if it would mean saving Agent Wells' soul. I fear this is the only thing on earth that could set her right now. Sir, she is searching for a weapon of mass destruction, as her partner and her _**friend**_, I feel I must find a way to stop this madness before it consumes her entirely."_

_Caturanga nodded slowly, "Quite a puzzle you have then. Perhaps try turning to a bit of music for inspiration." he said mysteriously before turning away._

_William blinked, completely confused. Why would music help him? Turning back to his notes on various known resurrection devices, he sighed. Perhaps some sleep was in order._

* * *

_A week later, William still hadn't come up with anything safe enough for him to try to use. He sighed, wondering what Helena was up to at that moment. Had she already found part of the Trident? Caturanga's words still echoed in his mind as well. He knew that if it came from the old man, it was surely a puzzle that needed an answer. Turn to a bit of music… maybe there was a music-related artifact that could help him? He'd need to do more research._

_Picking up the Artifact Compendium, he looked through its pages for all music-related artifacts. Hours later, he found mention of one not in the Warehouse that seemed to be exactly what he would need._

_He informed Caturanga that he would need to go on extended leave from the Warehouse, saying that a cousin of his was on his deathbed. He knew that Caturanga knew better, but the old man just smiled and wished him well._

_Paris, late November 1900_

_Inside the Musée d'Anatomie Delmas-Orfila-Rouvière_

_William had finally managed to track down the artifact he had been looking for. He thought it highly ironic that this item had ended up in Paris, the very city where it was to be used once again._

_The museum of anatomy was one of the larger museums in the area, and featured thousands of different items. Making himself out to be a simple tourist, he began his search._

_There were several sculptures of all things human, from full bodies to individual organs, and at any other time he might have been extremely fascinated with looking over the works of art and science, but today he was working and so kept his eyes open for the item he needed._

_Not seeing it in the museum itself, he subtly crept into the back rooms, glancing into offices. He had his Tesla handy in case he was discovered. Surprisingly though, there didn't seem to be too many people around. Entering an empty office, he saw what he was looking for on a nearby shelf._

_Johann Maelzel's Metronome._

_Wearing his protective gloves, he carefully took the artifact and hid it under his coat. When he exited the room, he noticed a security guard walking towards him and quickly turned to walk the other way, his footsteps quickening as he heard the guard walk faster as well._

_William turned a corner and sprinted into a full run, ducking into a nearby room to avoid being caught. He heard the guard run past, and waited until the sounds of footsteps vanished before coming back out. He managed to escape the museum undetected, but only just. He left the area quickly and vanished into the crowds, keeping a tight hold on the Metronome all the while._

_Knowing exactly where the tomb was, William made his way there as dusk fell over the city. When he made his request to visit the gravesite, the owner of the cemetery made mention that there was already someone visiting that grave._

_William froze, his heart skipping a beat in fear. Was Helena here? What could he possibly say to her to justify his being here? When he turned the corner though, he was met not with Helena Wells, but Grace Williams, the young doctor of Warehouse 12._

_"Caturanga sent me to help out here." she explained, seeing the dumbfounded look on his face._

_"Thank you." William said, relieved. He didn't question how Caturanga knew that he'd be there that very night; the old man just knew everything. Instead he asked, "Do the Regents yet know?"_

_"They do." Grace nodded, "Caturanga has spoken to them, and they have passed approval. Also, Agent Wells has returned to the Warehouse but has not been informed of this. Catutranga wishes to wait until this attempt proves to be completely successful before enlightening her, for fear of fueling the madness with false hope."_

_"I see." William nodded, "How long has H.G. been back to work?"_

_"She's been back for about three months now." Grace said._

_William nodded. So she'd returned a month after he'd left then. At the very least she hadn't done anything stupid quite yet. He wondered if she may have abandoned any crazy plans concerning the Minoan Trident after he'd discovered her._

_Grace looked at the tomb beside them, "There is still a chance we will lose her again. She will still be critically injured when she returns, and we do not yet know if the Metronome will keep her alive permanently or if it will only bring her back and then rely on her own life force to sustain her. We also are not fully aware of the downside to this artifact. Do you still wish to use it?"_

_"Yes." he said without hesitation._

_Grace nodded, "Very well then, let's get to work."_

* * *

Claudia raised her hand, "Sorry to interrupt, but when Pete and Myka went to Paris while tracking H.G. that time, they checked the casket and there was still a body in there." she said, confused.

William nodded, "After Dr. Williams and I removed the body, she left behind an artifact that creates illusions. It shows someone what they are expecting to see. You expected to see a body, and so you saw one." he explained, sipping some water that Leena had brought him.

Claudia raised an eyebrow, "That's kinda cool." she admitted.

"Continue." Mrs. Frederic said calmly.

William nodded and continued his story.

* * *

_They had moved the body to a secure location that was set up with many types of medical tools. They knew they had to act quickly once Christina was alive again to ensure that she would stay alive._

_They took the Metronome and set everything up. The process began as Grace talked William through the procedure, keeping a close eye on both of their vitals as he tried to bring the small child back into this world. _

_It was a long, tedious process, but eventually they'd done it. Christina gasped as she retuned to the world of the living. Dr. Williams was ready and acted quickly, taking the still heavily wounded body into surgery._

_It was then that the downside of the metronome became known as William felt every inch of pain that the poor child was feeling. He had endured many injuries over his lifetime at the Warehouse, but this phantom pain was new and nearly unbearable. _

_He only hoped that because he was feeling Christina's pain, it would mean that the young child wasn't feeling it. He consoled himself on that thought and found the strength to endure._

_Hours later, the surgery was finished. Christina had nearly flat-lined on the table 3 times, and William had felt it each time, but she was now asleep in a more stable condition. William went in to see her, sitting on the edge of her bed. He was tempted to now inform Helena of what was going on, but held back. Christina could still go back into critical condition, and as it stood now it was unsure if she'd even survive the night._

_Unbeknownst to him then, the death of a fellow agent was occurring in London._

* * *

William paused, glancing at Helena. The Time Traveler had been deathly silent so far. Her eyes were darker than usual as she took in this incredibly shocking and infuriating story. How _dare_ they not tell her that they had brought her precious baby back from the grave?!

"Helena?" Myka asked quietly. She had hold of the older woman's hand, stroking the back of it with her thumb soothingly.

Helena glanced at William, "…If I had known, I never would have gotten that man killed… nor would I have asked to be bronzed." she said sharply.

William nodded, "Caturanga and I wanted to be sure that she would be alright before we told you… We knew that if we'd lost her again, then there would be no hope left for your brilliant mind." he said quietly.

"So what happened next?" Pete asked impatiently, wincing as Claudia smacked him on the leg and gave him a stern look.

William took another drink of water before continuing.

* * *

_Over the course of the next few weeks Christina slowly regained her strength, and had started eating, drinking, and talking again. She seemed to have no sense of dying and no sense that any time had passed at all._

_William and Grace both kept careful eyes on her condition. William had made mention of feeling the child's pain, and so it was he who was more able to relay her condition back to the doctor._

_"William, may I see Mummy?" Christina asked one morning. The child was just as bright and curious as she'd ever been._

_William smiled, "Don't worry; we'll be able to see your mum soon. I promise to take good care of you until then." he said._

_A week after that, the doctor agreed that Christina was fit enough to travel back to London. _

_The trip was long, but the young girl slept most of the way, and knew to stay close to William and Grace the rest of the way back._

_London, early January, 1901_

_Outside Warehouse 12_

_"William, where are we? Is Mummy here?" Christina asked as they approached the doors of Warehouse 12._

_"I don't know if she's here this very moment, but we can check." he said, looking around. _

_When they'd entered into the facility, Caturanga met them soon after. _

_He smiled and knelt before Christina, "You must be Helena's little girl. Pleased to make your acquaintance. My name is Caturanga." he said, extending his hand to her. She took it and shook it politely, the very way Helena had taught her to._

_Christina smiled, "Pleased to meet yours as well Sir. My name is Christina. Mummy speaks very highly of you. Why does this building smell of apples?" she asked._

_Caturanga blinked in surprise at the comment. He glanced at William, who looked surprised as well._

_Turning back to Christina, he smiled, "It seems the Warehouse likes you, young child." he said._

_Christina tilted her head, "Buildings do not have feelings, how can it like me?"_

_Caturanga chuckled at those words, practically the very thing Helena had said the first time she set foot in the Warehouse, "That is a puzzle, isn't it?" he said mysteriously._

_"Is Mummy here?" Christina asked politely._

_Caturanga gave a sad smile and shook his head, "I'm afraid not…" he said, glancing at William._

_William knew then that something bad had happened. He knelt before Christina and said, "Why don't you run along and find Dr. Williams? Maybe she would like help with something."_

_Christina smiled and nodded, "Ok." she said, walking towards the room where the doctor had gone._

* * *

William rubbed the back of his neck, "Caturanga told me of your fate, and so this became a tricky situation. The Regents soon became involved as well, demanding to know what my plans were now, being unyielding in their terms that you were absolutely not to be debronzed even for this. I told them that I would take full responsibility for Christina's upbringing, and they agreed on the condition that when she was old enough, she would become apprenticed at the Warehouse. The most difficult part proved to be finding the words to explain to her why her mother wasn't around anymore. Over time she got used to it, though she didn't like it. It wasn't until much later that she learned the truth of the matter."

Helena closed her eyes, a single tear escaping her as she realized the true weight of what William had done for her, and how she'd practically thrown that all away by asking to be bronzed.

Not only had he brought her daughter back from the dead for completely selfless reasons regardless of punishment or risk, but he had raised her as well.

"So how'd you guys end up bronzed then?" Steve asked quietly.

William cleared his throat, "Yes, well… Christina became a Warehouse Apprentice at the age of 14, because even then she was far more mature and intelligent than most others of her age. The Warehouse soon became her happiest place on earth. She always hated leaving at the end of the day. One day, at the age of 16, when she had nothing better to do, she somehow found her way down to the Bronze Sector. We hadn't yet found a reason to explain that area to her, and so she simply thought that it was a room of statue artifacts. That is, until she found you." he said, looking at Helena.

* * *

_London, May 1907_

_Inside Warehouse 12_

_"William! I must ask you something." Christina said, walking over to him as he returned from a mission. _

_The young girl was wearing her new normal attire of a shirt made of velvet that had thin purple mesh sleeves embroidered with velvet leaf patterns, black leather pants, leather boots, and fingerless gloves. She had straightened her hair, not caring for her curls as she'd grown older. Her skin was naturally pale, and she wore blue eye-shadow that seemed to somehow bring her dark brown eyes out in a dangerous looking way._

_It was a very unusual look for a young girl of the age, but it did look good on her and everyone had gotten used to it._

_"What is it, Christina?" William asked as he set down the retrieved artifact on his desk._

_"Why is there a statue of my mother in the Warehouse?" Christina asked._

_William froze, not expecting her to have found the Bronze Sector on her own, "W-wherever did you see such a thing?" he asked, trying to get out of explaining._

_"I was bored and so went exploring. There is a room full of gold statues on the far east side of the Warehouse. One of them looked exactly like my mother." Christina said, watching him calmly. Despite her memories of her mother being faded and fuzzy, she kept several pictures of her close so as to never forget her face._

_William sighed, rubbing his eyes. He could try to keep dodging questions but he knew full well that she'd just keep asking. He figured by now Christina was old enough to understand the truth of why her mother wasn't around anymore._

_"They're not gold, they're bronze." he said, "And they aren't just statues. I believe you are now old enough to understand the true reason your mother vanished all those years ago..." he said, motioning for her to follow as he led her down into the Warehouse._

* * *

"And so I told her everything. I told her about her murder in 1899 and about the chain of events that followed. She was shocked, but surprisingly understanding of the situation. She thanked me for bringing her back, but was sad that things didn't move quickly enough for my original plans." William said calmly, "That conversation, however, was the start of a new chain of events it seemed."

Helena looked at William, "Wolly, I recall a time while I was bronzed that I kept thinking I was hearing a voice. Was that perhaps…?"

William smiled and nodded, "Yes, that was indeed Christina. After learning the truth about what had happened to you, she asked me if I thought you could still hear us. I didn't know for sure, but I told her probably. After that, she made a habit of visiting the Bronze Sector every day after work. She would sit there and talk to you for hours, telling you about her day and anything new she'd learned or done that day. It was her way of maintaining a connection, and so I never tried to stop her."

Helena bit her lip and looked down, tears stinging the back of her eyes as she took in all of this information, elated beyond comprehension at the thought of her daughter trying to hold onto their bond just as tightly as Helena still tried to even to this day.

"After some time and effort, we managed to free Christina from the Metronome, and life went on as usual, minus my lack of phantom pain whenever she hurt herself by accident, which somehow seemed to happen quite a lot. I noticed though that as a few more years passed, she started spending more and more time in the Bronze Sector. I didn't know it then, but she'd been trying to get the Regents to allow a de-bronzing. That was out of the question though, they were quite firm on that issue. After awhile, Christina made her own choice in what she wanted to do in that matter. She figured if she couldn't bring her mother back, then she would just have to find a different way to reconnect." William said quietly.

"She bronzed herself?" Claudia asked, wide-eyed.

William shook his head, "She tried to, and failed. She appealed to the Regents, asking them to do it for her, which was swiftly denied. And so there was only one unlikely person who was willing to make her wish come true…"

* * *

_London, 1912_

_Inside Warehouse 12_

_"We will see eachother again." Christina said quietly, reaching out to lightly touch the statue's cheek. _

_Turning away, she looked over to her companion and asked, "Are we ready, Caturanga?"_

_Caturanga gave a slight nod, "I believe so. Good luck in your journey. I hope you find what you are looking for."_

_Christina stepped into the Bronzer calmly, taking a deep breath._

_"WAIT!"_

_She blinked, watching as William came running down the halls. Caturanga turned to him calmly. William gasped for breath, holding a note in his hand._

_"William, what are you doing here?" Christina asked, shocked._

_"What do you bloody well think I'm doing here?! Christina have you lost your mind?! And you too old man! Why would you be willing to do this for her?!" he asked, furious._

_Christina sighed and stepped out of the Bronzer, "William, please try to understand… this is the only way I might be able to see my mother again. Please don't blame Caturanga either, this is my own choice made of my own free will. I know the chance is slim, but it's all I have…"_

* * *

Helena blinked, surprised, "Caturanga? _Caturanga_ bronzed my daughter?" she asked. In all the years she'd known the old man she never would have thought he'd do anything of the sort.

William nodded, "He was sympathetic towards her wish of having the chance to see her mother again. I tried to talk her down, but it became clear that her mind was made up. She got that very same look in her eyes that you always do whenever you've become hellbent on something." he said, "And so I made the choice to go with her. I figured even if we could never reconnect with you, she really was the only family I had. And so the old man bronzed the both of us together. When we were reawakened, I couldn't really say where we were. We were separated immediately, and I think I was knocked out. Next thing I knew I was here."

As the story came to a close, a silence fell over the room as everyone reflected upon what they'd learned.

Artie stood up, looking at the group, "Dr. Calder will be here first thing in the morning to do a check on our guest, and now that we know who else was stolen we can start searching properly first thing in the morning." he said, noting that they'd been talking for hours and it had grown late.

Leena prepared a late evening meal for everyone before the agents retired to their rooms for the night, everyone's minds preoccupied with the story William had told them. Leena showed William to one of the spare bedrooms.

Helena and Myka went into their room, where the Time Traveler was extremely quiet.

Myka walked over to the older woman and hugged her gently, "We'll find her, I promise. If she shares your stubborn streak then I know she'll be alright." she said, guessing what was troubling her lover.

Helena nodded, though didn't seem convinced. She wanted so badly to go out right that very second and find the people who had stolen her daughter away, just as she'd done once before. Her mind was still reeling with stunned shock at the realization that her baby was alive, but even moreso than that, she knew now that her baby was also in danger.

And _that_ could not be forgiven.

* * *

Aaaaaand there we have it, yes our mystery guest is indeed Christina Wells. As I said in the beginning this story came about from my entertaining a 'What If' scenario, which specifically was "What if Christina was actually alive somehow." I thought that would just be so ironic and such a perfect twist for Helena after what she almost did at Yellowstone. And yes, the picture in the title image is how I envision the young-adult Christina :)

I used the Metronome for a few reasons.

1. It has been shown on the show, so it is canon, which makes things easier since I didn't have to create a new artifact.

2. It was last used in 1839 in Germany, so not only does it fit in with the time period, but the location as well since Warehouse 12 agents went all over Europe.

and 3. There's no reason to suggest it couldn't have been used again in-between 1839 and 2011, so it seemed to be the ideal artifact to use.

Hopefully things make sense, I love all of your feedback and please ask any questions that you'd like! I don't think I left any obvious plotholes, but don't be afraid to point something out if you think I've overlooked something :) Till tomorrow!

-Akito


	6. Game On

It will be interesting to see the comments on this chapter. I must have redone the first half of it a dozen times and I'm still not sure it properly conveys what I was trying to show =/

I noticed that in the comments someone pointed out that Helena should have been far more angry and emotional last chapter after learning the truth, and I agree on that, though all that got pushed to this chapter due to chapter 5 being way too lengthy, which in turn resulted in a lengthy ranty inner-monolog of Helena's thoughts and emotions in this chapter, which I'm not entirely satisfied with but wasn't sure how else to fix it up.

Hopefully things still make enough sense and don't seem too OOC since we don't usually see an emotional Helena! =P If they do then I might alter it later on due to the feedback I get :) We'll see!

The story so far: The team has finally identified the other missing agent as Christina Wells, and now all they need to do is find a lead to who has her and why.

**Chapter 6: Game On**

The night stretched on far too slowly, as if time itself had stopped as Helena lay in bed, very much awake despite having not slept at all. She'd been staring at the wall for nearly 3 hours, as if in a trance.

Now that the shock had worn off, all the author could feel in her heart was a slowly building rage. She couldn't remember ever being so angry, not at the Regents, not at the people who had killed her daughter before her very eyes, not even at herself.

She was lied to by her friends, her partner, her TEACHER. How many of them knew about that while she was still there?! And the Regents, the bloody cowards that they are, why did they demand she stay bronzed when they knew that her daughter was alive and being forced to grow up without her?!

It was as if every emotion that had been locked up inside over the past 100 years suddenly fought to the surface of her consciousness in light of the fact that these very emotions that had driven her over the edge had been for nothing, just the byproduct of this huge and terrible lie she'd been made to believe.

The lie that her only child was gone and never coming back while she'd been alive behind her back for 100 years, even going so far as to choose the Bronzer to span time when she could have just as easily lived her own life in the past, and Helena would have never known the difference. Even Mrs. Frederic knew and never bothered to tell her.

With an aggravated sigh, she carefully eased out of the bed, needing to have some time to herself, though she was mindful not to wake Myka. This was something she didn't want the younger woman to see.

She was H.G. Wells. She was a powerful, brilliant woman, and she did not crack under the weight of emotional stress as other people did.

…Not in front of anyone, at least.

She silently slipped on her clothes and boots before leaving the room, heading downstairs without a sound.

She walked out into the chilly night, entrapped within the more violent part of her mind as she aimlessly walked deep into the forest behind the Bed and Breakfast. Part of her just really wanted to kill something, anything, though knew she'd have to settle for venting on something that couldn't fight back for now, until she could get her hands on something she could kill without much consequence.

She walked in a straight line for miles, before she finally stopped before a small cluster of trees.

It was only here, in the silence and solitude of the forest far away from the outside world, that the Time Traveler finally gave into the need to release her pent up frustrations, and screamed.

The next several hours were spent cursing loudly, punching trees, and shouting questions that had no answers to the stars above. Why didn't they tell her? Why did fate see fit to rip her daughter away from her only to have her returned without the slightest hint? Why was her only child forced to grow up without a mother?

These thoughts and many more circled around her mind until, finally, she broke. The author found herself kneeling on the ground against the tree she'd been abusing as 100 years worth of emotion all came flooding out in sobs of anger, regret, and a million other emotions.

Unbeknownst to her, the Warehouse Caretaker stood silently several yards away, watching over her most defiant agent as she finally cracked, knowing that this would, in the long run, help in the healing process.

Mrs. Frederic did not intervene, but rather stayed off to the side to make sure that her agent wouldn't try to put herself in any type of danger while so broken and vulnerable. Even the strongest and most defiant of people had to act human _sometimes_, and Agent Wells was no exception.

After she'd expended most of her energy, the Englishwoman started making her way back to the Bed and Breakfast as the sky started to lighten a bit.

Her knuckles were cut and bloody but she hardly felt it in the chill of the late fall morning. She hadn't vented nearly as much as she needed to, but she'd let enough out that she thought she could conduct herself with a mostly clear mind today around her teammates.

Helena slipped back into the house through the back door, silently going upstairs to shower and change. She was relieved to see Myka was still asleep and unaware that she'd been out.

As much support and love as Myka showed her, there were times where the pale Englishwoman just needed to be alone to scream and hit things. As childish as it was, it worked for the most part, having been a private method of releasing frustration since she was young, since the days of pointless arguments with her siblings and cousins.

After a long hot shower, Helena made her way downstairs. She'd put on a fresh set of clothes and a thin pair of fingerless gloves to hide the dull purple bruse that had started to form on both of her knuckles, making sure that she had calmed enough in the shower to look presentable.

Leena had left out everything needed to make tea the night before, figuring that Helena would need some either in the night or in the morning before everyone else was around.

Helena smiled at the innkeeper's thoughtfulness as she prepared the water. It had taken her awhile to figure out all of these new kitchen technologies, once starting a small fire by mishandling the toaster, but she'd gotten the hang of it by now.

She smiled at the thought of Claudia having to teach William and Christina about everything as well. There were so many new things to learn after 100 years in bronze. These thoughts helped to further calm her and improve her mood, particularly imagining William's first experience with a modern toaster.

Helena sat at the table by herself, sipping her tea. The hot liquid soothed her throat, which had become mildly sore from all of her shouting and crying. She hoped that no one would find out about her moment of weakness. Helena prided herself on being strong and in control, and hated feeling vulnerable.

Her thought shifted away from her momentary breakdown and focused again on Christina. Truthfully, she'd never intended to involve Christina in the world of the Warehouse, but she was pleased to have heard that her daughter enjoyed the work as much as she did. Helena wondered if she'd recognize her baby now that she was 20, and was absolutely convinced that she would.

Helena heard footsteps and glanced towards the door as an unusually awake Claudia appeared in the doorway. The redhead paused, not expecting to see her mentor there.

"Couldn't sleep?" Claudia asked, walking over to the coffee maker.

"I'm afraid not. I find my mind had been far too active through the night for a proper rest. I suppose the same is true of you as well, Claudia?" Helena asked. It wasn't exactly a lie; she _couldn't_ sleep for those very reasons.

Claudia nodded, "Yeah, I was gonna head out to the Warehouse early today to start trying to find out who mighta taken Christina. Wanna come with?"

"That would be lovely." Helena murmured, nodding. She was happy to see that Claudia was so eager to help locate her daughter. Afterall, Claudia was already like an adopted daughter as well as an apprentice.

Claudia smiled, "Cool, just lemmy finish my coffee and we can get goin."

She sat at the table opposite the Time Traveler and picked up the paper, looking it over as she sipped her coffee. Looking at her mentor, she asked, "Hey, H.G., I was just curious, what does the 'I' stand for in Christina's name?"

Helena smiled, "Isabel, after someone very special to me from that time."

Claudia smiled, "Christina Isabel Wells, very pretty." she commented, waking up more as she made conversation and sipped her coffee.

Helena had already mostly finished her tea, and though she was starting to become anxious to get to work, she managed to control herself and allowed Claudia to wake up fully. She knew that it would do no good to rush into things half asleep, as that would only serve to cause mistakes.

Helena excused herself from the table and walked up the stairs to go back into her bedroom where Myka was only just getting up.

She smiled upon seeing the younger woman, "Good morning darling, did you sleep well?"

Myka glanced over at her and smiled, "For the most part. You?"

Helena shrugged, smiling, "I… have had better rests. There was simply far too much to think about." she said, opting for a partial truth.

Myka nodded, "Yeah." she said, walking over to the Victorian woman to lightly embrace her.

Helena relaxed into the hold, resting her head on Myka's shoulder. No one else was allowed so far past her barriers, and no one else was allowed to see the vulnerable heart within the layers of defenses, but Myka somehow always found her way there and always seemed to know when the author needed someone to just hold her and comfort her, even if she didn't know about the breakdown in the forest.

Pulling back from the embrace slightly, Helena lightly pressed her lips against Myka's in a sweet kiss that was instantly returned. Myka smiled, holding onto her lover tightly. She knew how much Helena wanted to just blindly run out and find whoever had taken her daughter, and how all the waiting around was killing what little patience she had.

Myka then noticed the gloves and raised an eyebrow, "Why are you wearing gloves inside?"

"I… was simply cold, darling." Helena said, "This house gets rather chilly during the early morning hours."

Myka looked at her calmly, having a feeling that she was being lied to, "Well it's warm now, why not take them off?"

Helena shook her head, "I'm fine, darling." she said gently, and guided the conversation away from her hands with another kiss, this one a bit more heated. Hearing the soft moan that passed through Myka's lips, Helena knew that she'd won for now, but had a feeling they'd revisit this conversation later.

Pulling back after what could have been hours, Helena smiled, "I suppose Claudia is waiting for me. She asked me to accompany her to the Warehouse to get an early start on searching for Christina."

Myka smiled and nodded, "Alright. I'll be over as soon as I've eaten something, ok?"

Helena nodded, "I'll hold you to that promise, Agent Bering."

After leaning up for one more kiss, the older woman made her way back downstairs, where she smelt something burning.

Claudia was in the kitchen, trying to explain to William how to work the toaster.

She groaned, seeing her mentor reappear, "H.G, please help me…" she pleaded with the older woman.

Helena chuckled, reluctantly amused by the very sight she'd been imagining earlier, "Why dearest Claudia, whatever is the problem? You showed me how to work that infernal device just fine." she said, teasing a bit.

William rubbed the back of his neck, "Good morning, Helena." he said.

"Good morning Wolly." Helena said. She then proceeded to calmly explain the inner workings of the device, having taken Leena's apart before to examine it before putting it back together, and compared it to how they used to do it back in their day.

William was impressed how far technology had advanced even for such a simple task, "So it uses electricity to do it then? Is it safe?"

"Quite safe, Wolly." Helena assured him.

Leena could see Claudia was anxious to leave, and so she walked over, "I can take it from here." she said calmly.

"You're a godsend." Claudia said, walking towards the door.

Helena chuckled, "I'll be off as well then. I shall see you soon, Wolly. Do try not to catch the bread on fire." she teased.

"Like you did?" Leena said calmly, amused. She'd seen the multitude of conflicting emotions in the author's aura and couldn't help trying to cheer her up a bit. Though they weren't particularly close, the innkeeper still thought of Helena as part of the family.

Helena gave a sheepish look, 'I did apologize and clean up the mess, dear Leena."

Leena smiled, "Yes, you did." she said, "Go on, I'm sure Claudia is waiting."

Helena nodded and walked outside, making her way over to the SUV that Claudia had already started. Just as she was going to get inside, another car pulled up. Vanessa stepped out of the vehicle with her bag.

She smiled at the Victorian agent, "Good morning, Helena. How are you?"

"Quite fine thank you." Helena lied, "Dear Wolly is in the kitchen likely setting things on fire, I do hope you have that cream with you." she said. She was getting anxious again, but remained polite towards the old doctor.

Vanessa chuckled, "Yes I have the burn cream and bandages. After hearing we had another Victorian agent at the house I packed them specifically after last time." she said.

Helena smiled and nodded, "Right then, I believe I've kept Claudia waiting long enough. Good day, doctor."

With that, Vanessa went inside and Helena got into the car, glancing at Claudia, "So sorry for the wait darling. Shall we be off?"

* * *

The drive to the Warehouse was done in silence, both women preoccupied with their own thoughts. Helena was once again thinking about Christina, while Claudia was preoccupied thinking about everything she could do to track a bronzed person.

When Claudia pulled up to the Warehouse she blinked, "Uh… H.G.? Why's there a box outside the door?"

Helena looked towards where Claudia was looking. There was a simple brown box carefully positioned just outside of the entrance to the Warehouse. A raven was nearby pecking at it.

"I have no idea." Helena said, "Best be cautious though. Shall I call the others before we check it?"

Claudia nodded, "Yeah, it's probably some kinda trap."

Helena took out her Farnsworth and dialed Artie.

"What?" Artie asked grumpily when he answered.

"Artie, Claudia and I have arrived at the Warehouse and have found a strange parcel outside its door." Helena said.

Artie raised an eyebrow, "A parcel? What's in it?"

"We do not yet know. We wanted to make you aware of it before approaching, in case it is a trap." Helena said, getting out of the car when Claudia started approaching the box. The raven flew off in a rush. Claudia put on her purple gloves and carefully opened the box. She gasped upon seeing it's contents, covering her mouth.

"Claudia? What is it darling?" Helena asked, raising an eyebrow.

Claudia closed her eyes and slammed the box closed, looking like she was going to be sick.

"Claudia?" Helena asked again, the Farnsworth still on. Artie watched intently from the table.

Carefully, Helena looked inside the box and gasped as well, covering her mouth.

"What? What is it?" Artie demanded, upon her shocked silence he snapped, "…Agent Wells! _What_ is in the box?"

"Artie… I believe our phantom opponent has appeared again…" Helena growled lowly, taking in the sight before her as her heart filled with rage. The edge that had been shifted off of her temper from releasing her pent up emotions the night before had come back tenfold as her whole body shook in fury.

Inside the box was a bloody human finger, along with a bloodstained note.

'**_Game on, Wells_**.'

* * *

Reviews and critiques are love, especially on chapters that I struggled on! :) Thank's so much again to everyone who takes the time to review. Being my first Warehouse fic I'm so happy that people like it so far :)

Also cookies for anyone who knows who Isabel is and why she was someone that Helena would have been close to :)

-Akito


	7. Missing Pieces

Quick note for this chapter and the next few, please bear in mind that I am not a doctor, so if something Vanessa says or does doesn't make much sense that's probably why LOL

The story so far: After finding out the shocking news that her daughter is alive, Helena spends some time alone. Meanwhile Claudia tries to teach William about modern electronics, before the team are forced back into action by the discovery of a bloody finger in a box with a note to challenge Helena specifically.

**Chapter 7: Missing Pieces**

"…I'm sorry Helena, but I believe that is indeed Christina's finger. She wore nail-paint that color. I believe it is the left index finger." William said after seeing the finger.

The former Warehouse 12 agent was better than he had the day before, and so he accompanied the others to Warehouse 13, along with Vanessa. After she'd checked William over and surprisingly didn't need the burn cream just yet, she decided to come straight to the Warehouse after they learned about the finger.

William was amazed at all the new technology in the Warehouse, but didn't have time to dwell on it just yet, and so he stood silently beside Myka as they both kept an eye on Helena.

Since the discovery, Helena had been pacing back and forth in Artie's office, in a complete rage. Whoever this person was, they were going to get **_hurt_** if it was the last thing she did. The mere thought that someone might have cut her daughter's finger off was more than enough to unlock the author's violent temper, which was even more violent now than it usually was due to being mixed with her reawakened maternal instincts.

"Ok so now we know that whoever this is has a serious grudge against Lady Cuckoo here, so shouldn't that narrow it down a bit? I mean she's only been here for like 3 and a half years." Pete said to Artie.

Helena shot Pete a seething glare at the old nickname, not at all amused by it at the best of times, never mind when she was preparing to kill someone. Not even Myka could take the razor's edge off of her lover's anger at this moment, and so they decided to just leave her be while they examined the box for any indication of where it had come from.

Vanessa walked into the office, "Well, from my exam I can tell you that the finger was removed within the last few hours, and that whoever it belonged to was very much alive upon its removal. It was removed cleanly, likely with a hatchet or ax, and there were also traces of rust, so whoever did it isn't concerned about sanitation. Mr. Wolcott was also correct in saying that it is the left index finger, likely a woman's. I took a blood sample for comparison, so we'll soon know for sure if it's Christina's. In the meantime, the finger has been properly stored for reattachment later on."

While Vanessa was shocked to hear about Christina and William, she didn't let it stop her from doing what needed to be done. The old doctor looked at Artie, who gave her an exasperated look before glancing at Helena, whom was still off in her own little gory bubble of vengeance.

Even William seemed uneasy, as if he feared this incident would once again trigger the abyss of madness that he'd tried so hard to fix, which as he'd been told, was eventually fixed by Myka.

Leena had said the night before that where everyone else had initially seen Helena as being a bloodthirsty monster just because she was bronzed, Myka still had the capacity to see a broken and wounded human being in desperate need of help, though he hadn't yet heard the complete story. The innkeeper had said that it should probably be Myka or Helena that told the whole story, specifically the events of Warehouse 2 and Yellowstone.

Claudia was watching the security footage from earlier in the morning, looking through various recordings from cameras all around the outside of the Warehouse.

It was the same person who had stolen the two Victorian agents, though she couldn't see anything new about the phantom thief. Same black robe and same mask as before. They simply walked right up to the doors, placed the box down, and then left. She couldn't even see any plates on the getaway car.

Claudia sighed, running a hand through her hair. There had to be something here. This person was extremely confident and extremely cocky, which made them more likely to make mistakes. The only thing that stood out was that they drove an expensive looking car.

Wait a minute…

Claudia suddenly got an idea and started typing something into her computer. It was a long shot, but if she could just hack into the traffic cameras in Univille, then maybe…

"Bingo!" she said, making everyone jump, "Seems our mystery guest forgot that I am _awesome_. Check it out. I hacked into the traffic cameras in Univille and caught the very car that our phantom used here driving through the town last night. However, on the streets they still had their plates on. Running the plate numbers now."

"Good job." Helena said, forcing a smile even though she was still clearly in plotting-mode. She was still down to earth enough to give praise where praise was due at least.

A minute later, the computer beeped as it struck a match. Clauda grinned, but her grin slowly faded as she took in the name on the screen.

"That car was registered to Valda…" she said, wide-eyed.

Benedict Valda, a former Regent, had been dead nearly 2 years. He was killed in Warehouse 2 after unknowingly becoming entrapped in Helena's plans to steal the missing half of the Minoan Trident.

"What, Valda somehow came back from the dead and is getting revenge?" Pete asked.

"Or someone else is getting revenge for his death." Artie said slowly, glancing at Helena.

Valda's death, though accidental, was essentially entirely Helena's fault. If someone knew that, and then found out about Christina, she'd make the perfect revenge tool to make Helena suffer as well as the perfect bait to lure the author right into a trap.

Helena stayed quiet, knowing full well that she had indirectly murdered Benedict Valda, even if it hadn't particularly been her intention to at the time. She only needed him to get through Warehouse 2, she hadn't planned on him dying in a pit of fire and saw-blades.

"Now the question is who would want to enact such extreme revenge against Helena? And why wait so long to do it?" Myka said, thinking out loud.

"It's possible that they didn't know about William and Christina until recently. I'll call Mrs. Frederic." Artie said, standing and walking out of the room.

William didn't quite understand what they'd come across, but he figured there would be more than enough time for questions later. For now, finding Christina and finding the person who had taken them was top priority.

Myka walked over to Helena, who had finally stopped pacing at the news that it might be someone close to Valda who was doing this.

"Are you alright?" Myka asked quietly.

"What the bloody hell do you think?" Helena snapped.

Myka lightly put her hand on the older woman's shoulder, unafraid, "We will find her, I promise."

William looked at the two. He had never once thought that Helena would find someone to really settle down with, as she was always more the type to never stay with any one person for too long, especially after Isabel, but yet he could see something different in this relationship. Somehow he knew that for once Helena wasn't just using her charms to get what she wanted as she did every day for as long as he'd known her back in the day, but rather she'd actually found real love.

Helena shook her head, internally as angry at herself as she was towards whoever dared harm her child, "Who would have thought that when I'd made the terrible choice to betray you all so long ago it'd one day lead to my daughter being put in danger for my sins." she muttered.

William raised an eyebrow at that comment, remembering he hadn't heard the full story yet. Helena betrayed the Warehouse agents before? It seemed odd to him from how much they all seemed to love her now.

Noticing the look on William's face, Helena sighed, figuring she should tell him. At the very least it would momentarily focus her attention elsewhere.

"William, do you recall the supposed location of the parts of the Minoan Trident from the notes you'd discovered in the fireplace?" she asked.

William nodded, "I believe part of it was in Egypt, and part in Russia, correct?" he asked.

Helena nodded, "Yes, that's right. I found the part in Russia during my month away from Warehouse 12, and hid it on Christina's casket to be found later. The part in Egypt though, I'm afraid I didn't have access to until a little over two years ago…" she said, wondering if he'd catch on.

William's eye's widened in shock, "Oh Helena, you didn't! Even after all this time?" he asked. She'd really tried to end the world? Even 100 years later?

Helena nodded, "I'm afraid madness runs deep." she muttered, feeling Myka put a comforting hand on her shoulder, "The other half of the Trident was locked away in Warehouse 2…" she explained in detail how she'd worked her way into Warehouse 13 and used them to gain access to Warehouse 2, very nearly murdering Mrs. Frederic in the process.

She told him who Valda was, and how he had died in Warehouse 2 after the rest of them had gotten past the 2nd test, and everything that had followed, how Myka had talked her down at Yellowstone after she'd indirectly shot Artie, how the Regents had sealed her away in the Janus Coin until she managed to return to her right mind, largely with Myka's never-ending love and support, and how she'd been accepted back into Warehouse 13 after proving her loyalty by protecting Myka, Artie, and Pete from an artifact fallout, and later by protecting the Astrolabe.

William nodded, frowning, "I see. I'm thankful for Agent Bering then." he said truthfully, extending his hand to her, "For accomplishing what I failed to accomplish."

Myka smiled and shook his hand politely, nodding to him.

After the story had finished, William had a much better perspective on what his old partner had been through since being debronzed, secretly wishing he could have done more to help her before it had gotten to that point, knowing now that they really _should _have told her about Christina as soon as they'd brought her back.

William looked at his oldest friend, meeting her eyes evenly, "I am sorry, Helena. I know now that even with the risks we should have told you what was going on." he said.

Helena stared at him for a long moment with her arms crossed tightly over her chest before giving a small nod, "What's done is done." she muttered, part of her wanting to forgive him, and part of her still extremely angry at what had been going on behind her back.

Myka looked at him, deciding they needed to shift the topic of the conversation, "William, could you tell us a bit about Christina? What's she like?" she asked, genuinely curious.

William looked at her with a small smile, "She's a lovely young woman, curious and bright, as well as an outstanding Warehouse apprentice. She is calm natured for the most part, and rather modest in the face of praise and recognition. In the evenings after work she tends to practice singing, harboring a desire to someday sing for a large audience. She also seems to have a unique… skill, shall we say." he said, not sure if that was the right word.

"A unique skill?" Myka asked, curious.

William nodded, "It's almost as if she can… see things. Things the rest of us cannot see. I often find her talking to herself, though it sounds as though she's talking to someone else, and often seems to gain some sort of insight into cases this way, knowing things she couldn't possibly have known. This is especially true of cases involving artifact-related deaths, oddly enough. Though difficult to explain, it is quite remarkable really, though Nikola often found it rather unnerving." he said, knowing he wasn't really explaining it that good. It was more a gift someone had to see in action to really understand.

Myka tilted her head, not really understanding too well, She glanced at Helena, who was listening but hadn't said a word. The Englishwoman still had her arms crossed tightly over her chest.

"Sounds like she's kinda crazy to me…" Pete said, though backed off at Helena's glare.

Though the author was confused by what William had described, she would not stand for someone calling her daughter crazy. There was likely a perfectly rational explanation for the odd behavior.

"We believe we may know whom we are dealing with."

Everyone jumped at the sound of Mrs. Frederic's voice behind them. Beside her stood the head Regent, Adwin Kosan, as well as the Warehouse Guardian, Jane Lattimer.

"Mom." Pete nodded to Jane.

Jane smiled and nodded to him before Mr. Kosan spoke, "We believe the person responsible for the kidnapping and de-bronzing of William Wolcott and Christina Wells is a woman by the name of Taka Mikazuchi. She was a close personal friend of Benedict Valda, and as we found out upon looking into her home, has become rather obsessed with Agent Wells as of late, after stumbling across notebooks of Agent Caturanga's that described the secret bronzing of 1912."

Helena narrowed her eyes slightly at the name, "I accept full responsibility for Mr. Valda's passing, however I do hope you are fully aware that I will not allow this Taka to get away with bringing harm to my daughter."

Mr. Kosan gave her a stern look, "And I hope _you_, Agent Wells, are fully aware that the Regents will not allow you to get away with bringing harm to her. You will apprehend Taka, and you will not kill her regardless of what she has done. We will take care of her punishment."

Helena narrowed her eyes dangerously, but gave a curt nod, "Fine." She wouldn't kill her, but there was so much more that could be done.

"_Say it_, Agent Wells." Mr. Kosan said sternly, drawing an even more electric glare from the already agitated Victorian woman.

Helena's glare did not soften, but she offered up her sweetest and most sincere voice as she said, "I will apprehend Taka, and I will not kill her."

Mrs. Frederic looked at her agents, "We have triangulated the signals from Taka's Farnsworth and we believe we know where she's holding Christina. Jane will guide you all there. Be alert, and I will expect no unnecessary death to occur today, Agent Wells. Trust us to give Taka an appropriate punishment."

Helena wisely said nothing, crossing her arms over her chest as she looked at Jane expectantly.

Mr. Kosan nodded to Jane, who nodded back and looked at the group of agents, "Everyone who's goin, get your gear and let's head out."

After the agents had left the room, Mr. Kosan turned to Vanessa, "Have your tests come back yet? Do we know if it's hers?"

Vanessa nodded, "I'm afraid it is, and I don't think Agent Wells will play nicely when she finds that out."

* * *

Reviews are always love :) As for Christina's unique perk, we'll get more into that later but it's essentially a side effect of being dead for so long before being resurrected, and is similar to the unique perks of Pete and Steve.

-Akito


	8. The Hills Have Eyes

This chapter was fun to write :) Hopefully yall enjoy it as well.

And _I Wear The Crown_, Isabel Wells was the 1st wife of the real-life HG Wells from 1891-1895. Fun fact: She was also his cousin.

Enjoy!

The story so far: The person behind the kidnapping and debronzing has been revieled as a friend of Bennidict Valda. Helena tells William who Valda was, as well as what had happened in Warehouse 2 and Yellowstone. The Regents appear to lead the team to Taka's believed loaction.

**Chapter 8: The Hills Have Eyes**

Jane calmly drove out into the seemingly endless hills of the South Dakota Badlands. In the back of her SUV were Myka, Pete, Helena, Steve, and William. Artie and Claudia had stayed behind to offer support as they normally did.

William was looking over the new models of Teslas, amazed at how far they've advanced since Helena and Nikola had created them in 1893, in between asking endless questions about modern cars.

"So where're we goin anyway, mom?" Pete asked.

"There are some old abandoned mining caves out here that haven't seen use in a long long time. Eventually they became hideouts for bandits and thieves. We've traced Taka's Farnsworth to one of the deeper caves. That's likely where she's keeping Christina. Only thing though is these caves are mighty unstable. The right boom in the wrong place and everyone in there would be crushed to death. I wouldn't be surprised if that's the very idea, but at the same time I understand the desire to protect ones child. That's a feeling that only a mother could know, and so we'll take the risk." Jane said.

"Thank you." Helena murmured, knowing that Jane's child could very well be put at risk today as well.

When they arrived near the entrance to the caves, Jane stopped the car and looked around, not seeing any cars around.

She held a device that tracked Taka's Farnsworth, "Take caution, everyone, and stay together. If you don't know how to navigate this place you'd be lost in here for a lifetime." she muttered, lighting a lantern.

"Super…" Steve said quietly.

Everyone had their Teslas at the ready. Jane slowly led them deep underground, following the signals on her device. The caves were a series of winding tunnels that often crossed through one another.

Myka stayed close to Helena, knowing full well of her dislike of darkness and enclosed spaces. _That's probably one of the reasons Taka chose this location _she realized, her grip on her Tesla tightening slightly.

Jane's lantern lit the cave walls up, but it was only a small bubble of light. William seemed uneasy as well, and Myka suspected he'd developed a similar fear of darkness and enclosed spaces after being bronzed.

Pete was in the back of the group, making references to the new Tomb Raider game every few minutes.

"Pete I swear to bloody god if you mention Tomb Raider ONE. MORE. TIME…" Helena snapped, clenching her fist and giving him a deathly look. She was not in the mood for this right now, even moreso than normal.

"Alright alright cool it Lady." Pete said, putting his hands up defensively, not getting what the problem was until he remembered what happened in Egypt that time. That was one incident the Time Traveler had never lived down.

Pete continued to look around as they walked, not really paying too close of attention as he heard something. He paused, listening as he turned his back to the others, not seeing them turn a corner.

"Hey, you guys hear that?"

He paused, looking over his shoulder to find himself in complete darkness with a faint glow of light in the distance. Making his way down the tunnel towards the light, he blinked as he saw it was a torch on the wall and not the others.

"Great…"

* * *

Steve looked behind him as they moved forward, "Hey guys, where's Pete?" he asked.

The group of agents looked around, noticing they were one loudmouth short.

"I don't know, I thought he was behind you?" Myka said, "PETE?" she called. Her voice echoed off the walls, but there was no answer.

Jane sighed, "I said to stay together…" she muttered, "We'll keep going. We'll have to come back for him later. We'll be able to find him as long as he's still got his Farnsworth."

"Bloody silence at last…" Helena muttered under her breath.

* * *

Pete sighed, rubbing the back of his head as he remembered his mother's words about being lost in these tunnels forever.

The only thing he could do though was keep going forward. He'd taken the lit torch off the wall and jumped a mile as his Farnsworth buzzed.

He took it out and saw Steve and Myka.

"Pete where'd you go?" Steve asked.

"Thought I heard something and turned my back on you guys for a sec, I guess I lost ya. You guys keep goin and I'll try to work my way back to ya." Pete said.

Myka nodded, "Alright, be careful and call us if you find anything." she said.

Pete nodded, "Will do. Kirk out!" he said before closing the device, putting it back in his pocket.

He paused, hearing something again. He tried to follow the sound, keeping his Tesla ready. He walked for what felt like hours, but really must have only been 20 minutes as he kept turning corners to catch the faint echoes of sound he kept hearing.

It sounded almost like… talking?

He turned a corner and saw a faint light in the distance, heading towards it cautiously, suddenly getting a really good vibe. He noticed the sound stopped now that his footsteps echoed down the tunnels.

When he came close to the light, he blinked, seeing what looked like a makeshift jail cell in a small hollow cavern. On the wall was another torch, as well as a crack in the ceiling that let in a dim light and fresh air from far above, like a ventilation shaft.

* * *

"We're getting close." Jane said, looking down at her device. The group rounded a corner and came upon an open cave that was well lit with torches.

"My, you all took longer than expected." a woman's voice echoed off the walls, though they couldn't place where it was coming from.

"Taka, stop this insanity." Jane said, "Just give us the girl and then we can work this out."

"Why should I?!" Taka snapped, "That woman you're so fond of is a menace and should be left in the bronzer to rot. The Regents are too blind and stupid to do that though, so I guess this is a good enough alternative."

Helena narrowed her eyes, but managed to keep her voice steady, "You're angry because of Valda's death."

"Of course I am! You, _Agent_ Wells, are nothing but a cold blooded psychopath. Why should you deserve to live on when a man who only ever did good for the world is laying in a pit of fire for eternity? How is that right?! You should have been killed on the spot after Benedict's death, and yet here you are working for the Warehouse to this very day." she spat.

"You are quite right. Mr. Valda's death was my fault. I am responsible." Helena said evenly, walking forward into the room, "I was angry because someone I loved dearly was killed, or so I'd thought. If you want to kill me so badly, then show yourself and do it. No one else has to be involved. This is between us and us alone."

"Guys, there's wires all over the place, this place is gonna blow!" Steve said, noticing all of the cables leading into boxes on the walls.

Helena looked around the walls, narrowing her eyes in annoyance, "Just like that then? You would rather hide away like a coward and use explosives rather than facing me? How very sad."

"Helena, don't…" Myka started to caution, but Jane glanced at her and shook her head in a silent signal to allow her to continue.

After a minute, the older Asian woman stepped forward out of the darkness, her eyes narrowed as her finger rested on a button in her hand. Myka, Steve, and William all watched her carefully, prepared to use the Tesla if needed.

"Tell me Taka, if killing me is justice in your mind, why go to the lengths of harming my daughter? Just using her as bait then? An innocent girl who hasn't had any contact with me in over a century?" Helena said, trying to keep the Asian woman talking. She put her own Tesla away and put her hands up in what could be mistaken as an act of surrender, though the Englishwoman knew what she was doing.

"The girl served her purpose. She is already dead." Taka said, seeing Helena's entire body tense at that statement.

"She's lying." Steve said quickly, "She's lying and so Christina must still be around here somewhere. Where is she?" he demanded.

Taka glared at him, "You'll never find her without me. She'll be dead soon enough anyway."

* * *

Pete cautiously approached the cell. There was a dirty cot off to the side with a shadowed form laying on it.

"Are you Christina Wells?" he asked.

"… That entirely depends who's asking." the tired response came, though the English accent was unmistakable.

Pete put his Tesla away, "My name is Pete Lattimer, and I'm here to get you outta here. I'm a friend of your moms." he said.

"…My mother is dead." Christina said dryly, "That woman said so, so you can sod off trying to mock me."

"No no listen to me, Helena's _alive_ and she's here looking for you. Whatever Taka told you was a lie. She was using you as bait to try to get to your mom." Pete said, "That's why she needed that finger, to try to scare Helena. William told us about everything that happened back in the 1900's, and how you managed to cross time itself to have the chance to be with Helena again."

Christina sat up slowly and turned to look at Pete. The young woman didn't look well at all. Her skin was pale and she seemed extremely exhausted. Her left hand was tightly wrapped in a dirty bloodstained rag.

"How do I know that you really know my mum?" Christina asked warily.

"Well let's see, I know your mom was the true author behind a bunch of amazing novels that re-defined fiction as we know it. I know that the world, even 100 years later, thinks that Charles was H.G. Wells when he wasn't. I know that she's got a **_hell_** of a temper and tends to get really cranky if she doesn't have her tea in the mornings. And I know that she never stopped loving you or missing you, and always wears a locket with a photo of you when you were 7..." Pete rattled off everything that came to mind.

Christina nodded, "…Fine. I will choose to trust you." she said quietly.

Pete nodded and looked around the cell, "Now to get this door open…" he said, rubbing the back of his head.

* * *

"Tell me _Agent _Wells, did you like the gift?" Taka sneered.

Helena's eyes grew black as she glared at the woman. This stupid woman was just begging for a slow and painful death.

"Imagine my surprise, finding out that your best friend and daughter were living in the Bronze Sector right under your nose, and you had no idea. I do wonder why Irene never mentioned it. Probably trying to keep the psychotic episodes to a minimum." she continued calmly.

"It bothers you, doesn't it Taka? Knowing that while poor Mr. Valda is dead, I am alive and happy, living in a place of miracles. The very place that dear Valda loved so much." Helena said evenly, keeping her eyes on the Asian woman.

"Shut up!" Taka snapped, threatening to push the button as Helena boldly took a step forward, closing the distance between them slightly.

"We are not all that different, you and I. Who knows, perhaps someday down the road it will be you standing over the Yellowstone Caldera holding the Minoan Trident out of the sheer insanity born of grief and nurtured by hate. Wishing this world was no longer simply because you have known the pain brought on by loss." Helena continued calmly.

Now that she had the other woman on the defensive she could control the situation long enough to get what she wanted.

"I am nothing like you!" the Asian woman said harshly, not even realizing that she'd almost completely lost control now.

William couldn't help but think that this woman wasn't very bright if she was giving into Helena's mind games so easily, though he guessed that that wasn't a bad thing in this case, it would mean they could very well escape this place unharmed.

"Not yet. But someday you might be like me. Bear in mind, dear Taka, that I wasn't like me until I became this way after experiencing the soul-wrenching pain of losing a child to a pointless and brutal murder. Mr. Wolcott can attest to that. It was only then that I changed. All I could think about was vengeance, to the point where I even hurt my own dear friend in a blind rage. I only hope that if you reach that point of madness, so far gone that you don't even _remember_ what it'd like to be sane, that there will be someone there to rescue your soul." Helena said, now close enough that she could grab the device if she wanted to, but she didn't. That could prove to be far too risky.

No, she had to be tactful about this or everyone in that room would die. There would be more than enough time to deal with this woman _properly_ after she'd made sure her friends and her daughter weren't in danger.

* * *

Pete managed to get the door open and was trying to make his way out of the tunnels, but really had no way of knowing where he was going.

"How are ya holdin up, Christina?" Pete asked the quiet girl.

"I am fine." Christina said, though she didn't look fine at all. Pete figured if she was anything like her mother then she'd say she was fine even if she was an inch from death.

Pete looked around, unsure which way to go. He knew that he had to get Christina to Dr. Calder as soon as possible, but for all he knew he was just getting them more lost.

Pausing, he sighed, "I have no idea how to get out of here. You rest a minute while I call for help." he said, taking out his Farnsworth.

Christina eyed the device with curiosity as she slumped against the wall, holding her left hand tightly as blood dripped through the rag and onto the floor, "…What is that?"

Pete glanced at her, "A guy called Philo Farnsworth made these things in the 1930's. They're used to contact people from anywhere in the world." he gave a vague explanation.

"Fascinating…" Christina said quietly as she watched him click a dial on the device. The screen lit up to show the face of a young girl.

"Pete, what's up?" Claudia asked.

"Hey Claud listen, I got separated from the others in the tunnels but I found Christina. She's here with me but we need a way to get outta here. Can ya… I dunno, lock onto my phone or Farnsworth or something and guide us to the exit?" Pete asked.

"Yeah sure, hang on." Claudia said, typing into her computer.

"Thanks. Also can ya have Dr. Calder drive out here to meet us? Kid needs medical help pronto." Pete added.

"I am _not_ a kid." Christina snapped, sounding every bit like her mother.

Claudia heard her and couldn't help but smile. That was definitely, without the slightest doubt, Helena's child.

Christina looked up past the Farnsworth, staring for a minute at the wall opposite them before her gaze slowly traveled to the corridor to their left, "That way." she said.

"Ok, hook a left and then head straight till I tell ya to." Claudia said, looking at her computer.

Pete blinked, looking at Christina, "Wha… how'd you know that?"

Christina shook her head, "You wouldn't believe me even if I told you." she muttered.

Pete remembered what William said about the girl seeing things and then somehow knowing things she couldn't have known before. This was too weird, and so he just didn't question it. There were bigger things to worry about than a girl hallucinating.

Pete just nodded, offering Christina his arm to lean on as they moved.

The Englishwoman stubbornly tried to walk on her own at first, but soon gave in as the lack of food and water took its toll on her body, and she reluctantly held onto Pete for support.

She technically hadn't had anything substantial to eat in over 100 years, and her limbs felt heavy from using up what little energy she'd had left. The damage done to her hand was throbbing, sending bolts of pain shooting up her entire arm with every pulse of her heart. The rag, though slowing her blood loss, offered little in the way of stopping it completely and was already soaked through and dripping.

Pete made a point not to look at the bloody rag, still extremely squeamish at the sight of the viscous red liquid. He focused on keeping Christina talking and alert as they walked, mostly discussing Helena, and how she'd come to work at Warehouse 13.

Pete intentionally kept to the better things that the Time Traveler had done, such as helping locate Cinderella's Glass Knife with her time machine, rather than discussing the bad that she'd done over her few years of reinstatement.

Claudia chimed in on the stories as well after telling Vanessa to head out to the caves with her supplies. She was surprised at how Christina looked when she saw her through the Farnsworth.

"Very goth for a Victorian lady." she commented, "I approve. So uh… ever read your mom's books?"

Christina smiled, "William used to read them to me every night as a child. I could likely retell them all by memory." she said quietly.

As they talked, Pete noticed that the young woman had pale scars stretched across her throat and face, but they didn't look new and so he figured he could ask later on. Following Claudia's instructions, they slowly made their way towards the entrance to the caves.

* * *

While Helena was distracting Taka, Jane subtly used her Farnsworth to get the latest news on the situation from Artie and Claudia. She was surprised that Pete had managed to find and rescue Christina all on his own, but she couldn't be more proud of her son.

She kept her distance from the two women as she said, "It's all over Taka. The girl's been found and is being treated by Dr. Vanessa as we speak. You've got nothing left here to bargain with." It wasn't exactly 100% true, but she knew that Pete and Christina would be out of the caves and in the good doctor's care shortly.

That was all the encouragement Helena needed as she took advantage of Taka's surprise with a swift kempo attack that threw the old woman off balance, making her drop the explosives trigger. Steve quickly grabbed the trigger, keeping it far away from the Asian woman.

"No… NO!" Taka screeched, "It's not FAIR!"

"Bloody rotten luck indeed. You should have used that petty little device when you had the chance rather than standing around talking to me." Helena hissed as she grabbed Taka by the throat, slamming her against the wall.

"Helena!" William and Myka both said in unison, unsure what she was going to do.

Helena ignored them, focusing on Taka with a face that could scare the devil. Her eyes had grown impossibly black as she glared at the squirming woman, who was trying to break free of her iron grip.

"I'd advise you to listen very closely to me now, dear girl." Helena said, her accent becoming thick as her voice became low and threatening. She looked like a woman possessed as her fingers tightened ever so slowly around the soft flesh. "The _only_ reason you're still carrying on with your pathetic existence is because I gave your boss my solemn promise that I would deliver you to him _alive_, and the only reason you're not being maimed within an inch of death is because there are far too many witnesses. But I warn you now; if you **_ever_** try to harm my family again you will not come off so lucky."

With that, Helena roughly threw Taka to the ground and looked at Jane, "I presume you have handcuffs then?" She knew better than to properly punish this woman in front of a Regent, and in front of Myka.

That would have to wait a bit.

* * *

Reviews are always love, peeps :)

-Akito


	9. My Immortal

Woooo this story is coming to a close now 8D I had so much fun writing it, and am so happy that it was well received. This chapter was named after the epic song by Evanescence, which I was listening to alot while writing it :3

On a random sidenote, wtf is up with SyFy putting the next new episode up on their site 2 weeks early? o_O Haven't watched it yet, gonna wait till the 29th since I have a feeling they'll post it up early then whine about low views on the tv side.

The story so far: Pete found and rescued Christina while Helena was taking care of Taka, ending in the team arresting Taka to make her face the Regents, though Helena has other plans first.

Enjoy!

**Chapter 9: My Immortal**

When Pete and Christina made it out of the mineshaft, Vanessa was waiting with bottles of fresh water and some fruit for them. Christina smiled and accepted the water with her good hand, feeling much better after a few long drinks of the icy liquid.

Vanessa had Christina sit in the back of the SUV with the hatch up as she indulged in the water. The old doctor carefully removed the sticky rag and looked over the wound, which she suspected might have become infected from the dirty tool used to cut it as well as the dirty rag she'd used to try to stop the bleeding.

"I should be able to reattach the finger when you've gotten some strength back." she told the young girl, "How's the pain?"

"Bad." Christina admitted.

Vanessa nodded, "I imagine you're in shock a bit, so it might get a whole lot worse later on. I'll give you some medication for the pain, as well as some antibiotics for any possible infection. You might need a tetanus shot as well, and I'd recommend drinking lots of water since you're likely dehydrated."

"Thank you." Christina said, her voice much stronger now from the much needed water. She flinched as Vanessa wrapped her hand in clean white bandages laced with medicated gel, but tried to keep a strong face on.

Vanessa smiled when she was finished, "You're a very brave and strong young woman, Christina. Your mom will be proud."

* * *

As the agents made there way through the tunnels, they kept a close eye on both Taka and Helena. Everyone knew the Englishwoman well enough by now to know that there was so much more she wanted to do to the old Asian woman after what had happened.

Myka stayed close to Helena, who hadn't said a word since they started making their way back. Her eyes were still black and predatory as she watched Taka, and Myka could almost see the gears spinning in that brilliant mind, likely trying to figure out how to isolate their prisoner from the rest of the group.

Suddenly Steve tripped as something moved in front of his foot, knocking into Jane who dropped the lantern. The flame went out as it hit the floor, plunging them into darkness.

"Sorry!" Steve said, quickly helping the Regent up.

"I'm fine." Jane said, "Though try to be more careful Agent Jinks."

When Jane picked the lantern back up and lit it again, Helena and Taka were no where to be seen.

Jane narrowed her eyes, "She did _not_…"

Myka sighed, "Oh Helena."

* * *

Taka gasped as she felt herself being pulled away in the darkness with a hand like iron over her mouth.

"Now then Taka… I believe we should have a proper chat concerning your crimes against my family…"

* * *

An hour later, Pete was standing near the car, chewing on an apple. He glanced over as the rest of the agents appeared from the caves with Taka in handcuffs. He gave a large goofy grin and waved them over, excitedly pointing to Christina, who was talking with Vanessa.

He blinked, seeing the state of the prisoner. She was bruised and bloody, like she'd been beaten up recently, and looked like she had a missing finger as well. He sighed, knowing who had gone and done that.

Helena's breath caught in her throat as her eyes fell on her long lost daughter, taking in the image before her. Even though she had grown so much, there was no doubt that she was still the daughter she had loved so very much, the daughter she had never stopped loving even long after her death.

For once, the Time Traveler found herself utterly overwhelmed with emotion as her throat closed up a bit. She never thought she'd ever get to see her daughter as a young adult after that horrible day in 1899.

Jane looked at Helena, "Go on then. We'll deal with your actions later, Agent Wells." she said.

Myka smiled widely at the awestruck look on Helena's face, "Go on, sweetheart." she urged her lover gently after Jane had walked off.

Helena approached slowly, as if she was afraid that this was all a fantastic dream that would shatter away in a million pieces if she moved too quickly.

Vanessa saw Helena approaching and smiled, stepping back to give them room. She noticed Taka and went over to examine her wounds in the meantime.

Christina looked over and saw her mother, her eyes growing wide as she experienced her longest running wish finally realized.

"Mum…" the young woman whispered. It was as if one of her treasured photographs had come to life. Her mother hadn't changed a bit, minus wearing her hair differently now. In every photo, the older woman had her hair done up in a fancy way, but now she let it fall naturally down her back.

"Christina…" Helena said just as softly, a brilliant smile crossing her features.

Christina smiled back as she stood up and hugged her mother tightly, burrowing into her. Helena hugged her back just as tightly, peppering kisses all over her daughter's forehead as she closed her eyes tightly, basking in this glorious moment.

If she'd believed in any sort of higher power she'd thank them endlessly for this blessing. It was as if the pain she'd been carrying for so long just vanished in the glow of the reunion.

"I've got you love, I've got you…" Helena murmured, holding onto her baby as if she was afraid in a heartbeat she'd be ripped away again. She was regretful she couldn't be there to watch her daughter grow up, but she'd be damned if anything dared try to stop her from being there for her the rest of her days.

Pete watched them with a huge smile, wiping his eyes as he did.

"Dude, are you crying?" Steve asked with a smirk.

"Yep, and I really don't care if it makes me a girl." Pete said, smiling.

After several minutes, the two Victorian women pulled back, both smiling, feeling happier than they had in a long time. Christina looked over and saw William, who was watching them happily, pleased that they'd both finally found what they'd been searching for.

"William! You are unharmed?" Christina asked, sitting back down in the back of the car.

"Indeed. I'm sorry that you couldn't say the same, my dear." William said, looking at the bandaged hand where there was obviously one finger missing.

"Oh I'll be right, Dr. Calder said she can reattach it." Christina said with a shrug, still trying to be brave and strong in front of everyone.

Helena looked back at her daughter and frowned as she noticed the pale scars on her throat and face.

Guessing what her mother was looking at, Christina lightly touched the scars on her throat and said, "Remnants of 1899, I'm afraid. Fear not though, they do not hurt." she said.

Helena said nothing, but hugged her daughter again, making a silent vow to never again let anything like that happen to her baby.

Vanessa smiled, "Come on, let's get back to the Warehouse." she said to everyone, wisely putting Taka far away from Helena after she'd treated and wrapped most of her wounds.

Myka, Helena, and Christina rode back with Vanessa while Pete, Steve, William, and Taka rode back with Jane.

The three men kept a very close eye on their prisoner as they did, ready to hand her over to Mrs. Frederic and Mr. Kosan when they got back to the Warehouse.

Even through her exhaustion, Christina was amazed at the technology behind modern cars and made a point to ask several questions along the way back.

* * *

When the group returned to the Warehouse, Mrs. Frederic, Mr. Kosan, Artie, and Claudia were waiting for them outside.

Christina approached Claudia curiously, "You were the girl on that device." she said, surprised.

Claudia laughed, "Yep! That was me. Name's Claudia Donovan. Warehouse 13 Next Generation." she said, smiling, offering a hand that Christina politely shook with her non-bandaged hand. She'd made sure to wipe off the blood on the way back with one of Vanessa's clean towels.

"You must show me how those devices work sometime." Christina said and smiled, already liking this girl.

Claudia beamed at that, "Sure! Anytime! There's a ton of tech advancements I'm gonna hafta teach you and William all about." she said happily, loving the idea of making a tech-sister out of the Victorian girl.

Mrs. Frederic offered her hand to Christina next, "I am Mrs. Frederic, the Caretaker of Warehouse 13. This is Mr. Kosan, the head of our current Regents. We've heard quite a lot about you lately, Ms. Wells."

Christina shook Kosan's hand next, smiling politely. She hoped that she could sit and rest for a bit soon. While the food Vanessa offered her had given a temporary energy boost, she really needed a proper rest after going nearly 2 days without food or water after being de-bronzed.

Mr. Kosan walked towards Taka, who hadn't said a word since she'd been attacked by Helena back in the tunnels. He took in her condition and glanced at Helena.

"I didn't kill her." Helena said, meeting his gaze evenly.

Mr. Kosan turned back to Taka, "You seem to have caused the Regents a great deal of trouble." he said, perfectly calm as always, "Come along now, you must be held accountable for what you have done."

With that, Mr. Kosan led her to one of the cars. Once she was safely put away, he turned back to the group, "The Regents shall discuss what shall be done regarding Mr. Wolcott and the young Ms. Wells. We will be in touch."

Claudia blinked, "Woah wait a sec, they'll be staying here with us, right?" she said, stepping forward.

_They bloody well better be..._Helena thought darkly, though she knew to save her threats for if they dared try to take her friend and her daughter away from her again.

"It will be discussed." Mr. Kosan said calmly, "In the meantime, I'll expect all of your reports concerning this incident within the next few days."

* * *

Leena was waiting for the team when they'd arrived at the B&B. After serving a light meal and some warm tea, she showed Christina to the spare room beside Helena's room. The young girl thanked her properly and lay down to rest for awhile, happy to be fed and to be lying on a clean and incredibly soft bed.

Vanessa had said that she would reattach her finger first thing in the morning. The painkillers she'd been given reduced the throbbing to a dull ache, and she found that even with that sleep came quickly.

Helena wanted to watch over her daughter, though the others managed to convince her that the young girl would be perfectly safe while resting. Instead William decided to help distract his old partner by talking about their days at Warehouse 12.

Everyone listened with great interest, laughing along as the old friends caught up. Leena smiled, having never seen Helena's aura shine brighter than it was now, even with its tints of fear.

Myka smiled as she watched her girlfriend talk and share stories alongside her oldest friend as they reconnected. She didn't need Leena's gift of seeing auras to see how happy Helena was, even though she kept glancing up towards the stairs. Myka stood and walked into the kitchen to get some iced tea. The innkeeper followed her calmly.

"I'm happy for her." Leena said, smiling as she started preparing dinner for everyone.

"Me too." Myka said, nodding as she sipped her iced tea, "Do you think the Regents will allow William and Christina to work at the Warehouse again?"

"I don't see why not." Leena said, hoping that they would. She didn't want Helena to recede back into the darkness again now that she'd finally been given the happiness she had been denied for 100 years.

Myka nodded, thinking along the same lines. She knew somehow that if Helena lost her daughter again then there would be no way to save her from her darkness, and for Myka life without Helena was simply not an option anymore. She hoped that the Regents would know all of this and take everything into consideration before making a decision.

* * *

By the time dinner was finished and the evening wound down, Helena excused herself and wandered upstairs. Curious, Myka walked after her.

Helena looked back and smiled, offering her hand to her lover as she walked into the blissful silence of the upstairs hallway. She was still wearing her gloves, having forgotten about the cuts and bruises. She winced slightly at Myka's hand applying pressure to them.

"Are you alright?" Myka asked, lightly running her hand along Helena's cheek as they stopped walking, standing against the wall in the narrow hallway.

The author smiled and leaned into the gentle touch, "Quite fine darling, just a tad overwhelmed with everything that has happened today."

Myka looked at her knowingly, "Why are you still wearing gloves, Helena?" she asked, hoping for the truth this time.

Helena sighed softly, having known that Myka was bound to ask again. She carefully removed them and held up her hands, showing her the deep purple bruises and cuts, which were especially vibrant against her otherwise pale skin, "Last night while laying in bed, I'm afraid I gave into the need to be alone, and so left the house for a few hours, during which my time was spent attacking a few innocent trees out of frustration."

Myka frowned at the bruises, looking them over. She lightly took her lover's hand, leaning forward to kiss the angry marks gently, "I wish you would have told me." she said.

Helena put her gloves back on, "I didn't want to worry you, darling."

Myka glanced at Christina's door, deciding to let her off the hook this once considering everything that has happened, "I'm honored to have been able to meet your daughter in person. She seems to be a bright and lovely young woman." she said after a moment.

Helena smiled proudly, taking hold of her locket out of habit, "I suppose I have Mr. Wolcott to thank for raising her right."

Myka smiled, leaning in to kiss her lover. This kiss was gently and comforting, a silent promise between the two to always look out for their ever-growing family.

Pulling back, Myka looked at Helena and asked, "Helena… back in the caves, if we hadn't been there, would you have killed that woman?" she asked, biting her lip.

Helena sighed softly, "Truthfully, I believe I might have."

Myka nodded, gently running her fingers through Helena's soft raven hair, "I'm glad you didn't." she said, "I'm proud of you."

Helena's eyes lit up at those words in a display of childlike excitement, always elated to hear that Myka was pleased with her. Afterall, these days she found that she lived to make the younger woman happy.

* * *

Christina woke briefly to the sounds of talking. She stretched and gasped as the pain in her hand came to life again, worse than before. She looked around for the medicine that Dr. Calder had given her, spotting it on the bedside table.

Hearing her mother right outside the door, she called out softly, "Mum…?"

Helena blinked, glancing over her shoulder. She walked into the room quickly, "Yes, darling?"

Christina smiled, seeing her, "Might I have a cup of water, please? It seems it's time for my medication."

Helena smiled, "Of course darling." she said, walking out of the room.

Myka smiled and sat on the bed with Christina just as Dickens came running into the room and jumped onto the bed.

Christina's eyes lit up at the sight of him, "Aww, how cute." she said, petting him with her good hand.

Myka smiled, "His name is Dickens, he's your mom's cat."

Christina raised an eyebrow at that, "My mum has a cat? Dear lord this _is_ a different world." she chuckled. Her eyes briefly cast to the side, as if she'd seen something, though she quickly averted her gaze, as if trying to ignore whatever it was.

Myka noticed this and looked over her shoulder, but saw nothing. She recalled what William had said before and wondered if she should ask.

Looking at Myka again, Christina smiled, "Pete mentioned that you are in love with my mother." she commented nonchalantly before Myka could ask, though her honest curiosity about the subject wasn't hidden at all.

Myka smiled, nodding, "I am. I care very much for your mother."

Just then Helena reappeared with a glass of water from the kitchen sink. Christina accepted the water and thanked her before taking the medicine easily, the pills being much easier to take than the medicine she was used to from the 1800's.

Helena sat on the bed beside Myka, gently caressing Christina's hair, her radiant smile never leaving her face. Myka smiled and watched them for a minute before excusing herself, feeling as though she was intruding on something personal.

Helena lightly grabbed Myka's hand before she got too far, guessing what was going through her mind, "It's alright, Myka. You're not out of place." she said.

Truthfully, Helena needed Myka there to make everything less overwhelming. She didn't like being so vulnerable or clingy, but all of this being returned to her all at once made her dreadfully terrified of losing it all again. Myka had been her one constant though, always around when needed no matter what, even before they'd officially become a couple.

Myka looked into Helena's dark brown eyes and understood, sitting back on the bed. Christina watched the exchange with an amused smile as she pet Dickens. The cat had curled up on her lap on top of the blankets, purring loudly as he decided he liked this new human.

Christina laid back down, letting the cat stay where he was. She smiled, "When did you decide to get a cat, mum?"

Helena looked at her daughter and smiled awkwardly, "Let us just say I didn't really have much of a choice in the matter, though I believe that is a story for another time." she said, not really wanting to tell Christina about being trapped in the Janus Coin, in what could essentially be described as solitary prison as punishment for crimes against not only the Warehouse, but the entire world.

Christina nodded, sensing that there was something more to be said but she didn't push. She relaxed more as her medication started to take the edge off of the burning in her bandaged hand, though not as much as it did before. She tried her best to ignore it and relax.

After a short while, the young girl was asleep again with Dickens curled around her to keep her warm and comfy.

Myka smiled, hugging Helena gently, "Let's go to bed as well. I have a feeling tomorrow's gonna be a long day."

Helena took one last look at her daughter before Myka managed to coax her up to lead her into the room next door, reminding her that there was no safer place for a Warehouse apprentice than Leena's. Reluctantly Helena agreed and followed Myka to their room.

Despite her pressing fears of losing her daughter again, it seemed like for the first time in over 100 years everything was exactly how it should be.

* * *

Wheeee... only 1 or 2 more chapters to go :)

-Akito


	10. The Future is Bright

Woot, just the epilogue left after this.

I have decided to write a sequel for this story, but I have no idea when it will be done. Right now it is just in the idea/planning phase, and is under the working title of "Final Exam" though that is completely subject to change before the end.

The story so far: Christina and William have been accepted into the Warehouse family. Now all that's left is to wait for the Regents to make their choice.

Enjoy!

**Chapter 10: The Future is Bright**

The next several days were a period of readjustment for everyone. While waiting for the Regents to contact them the team allowed William to come to the Warehouse and help out. He was amazed at the extent of the technology that he didn't think even Helena could have come up with in their day.

He seemed to be settling in well though, thankful to have someone familiar to guide him through this entirely new world. Artie had decided that William and Helena would be partners again when they were required to go out into the field, already acting like William was _his_ agent. He preferred teams of two rather than teams of three, as it was the norm for agents of the Warehouse.

Vanessa had successfully reattached Christina's finger, though the young apprentice hadn't yet been allowed to come to the Warehouse, despite her complaints that she could quite easily do desk work.

Everyone had submitted their reports to the Regents concerning what had happened with Taka, starting with the moment they had realized there was an intruder.

Even William and Christina submitted their own reports that covered what they knew about the situation, after Claudia had shown them how to type up reports on the computer. Christina had made a point to describe in detail how her finger had been removed with a rusty hatchet, hoping that Taka would pay for that.

In the meantime, Helena spent every moment Artie would allow with Christina, finding that she became quite anxious when the apprentice was out of sight for too long. Everyone noticed this potentially dangerous behavior, but hoped that Helena would calm down with time and work.

One evening, Christina lay on the sofa in the living room, looking over her bandaged hand, experimentally moving her finger back and forth, despite the pain that shot through her arm at every twitch.

Being primarily left handed, she was happy that the doctor had been able to save it. After much persuasion, Artie had said she could come to the Warehouse in the morning. She suspected he caved just to get her to be quiet, but she didn't really care. She looked forward to exploring this new iteration of the Warehouse.

She'd adjusted to this new world much easier than William had, mostly because she was younger and more apt at picking up new skills and new technology.

Helena watched her daughter from the doorway for a moment before walking upstairs to find Myka. While everything seemed to be wonderful now, something had been nagging at the back of the inventor's mind that she couldn't quite figure out.

"Myka?" Helena asked quietly when she'd entered their bedroom.

Myka looked over, noticing the look in Helena's eyes, a look of troubled confusion, "Helena, what's wrong?" she asked, concerned. Had something happened to Christina?

"Nothing is wrong, darling. At least, I do not think so." Helena said, frowning as she sat on the bed, "Myka, is something the matter with Claudia?"

Myka blinked, not expecting that. She tilted her head, "I don't think so, why?"

"She seems to have distanced herself from me ever since we found Christina. Have I done something to upset her?" Helena asked.

The author had noticed it every day since they'd brought her daughter home. Claudia seemed to be avoiding her company at any cost, and when she did talk she only gave very short answers and then left again.

Myka tilted her head, thinking back, "Have you talked to her?"

"She will not speak with me properly." Helena frowned, completely bewildered by her apprentice's sudden shift in behavior.

Myka suddenly had an idea, "I think I might know what's wrong with her… You've been spending almost all of your time since then with Christina, do you think Claudia might be feeling a bit… I dunno, left out?" she suggested.

It would make sense with how tightly Claudia latched onto the people in her life, and how the young redhead had always regarded the older woman as both a mentor and an adopted mother, though she'd made Myka promise not to tell that much out of embarrassment.

Helena tilted her head, thinking. She hadn't considered that before, nor had she realized she might mean that much to the future Caretaker.

"I think she might just need reassurance that she won't be pushed aside now that Christina's back in your life. You know how much she fears being abandoned." Myka said, wrapping her arms around the older woman gently, "I don't think she has anything against you or Christina, but rather this could be her way of protecting herself in advance due to her subconscious fears. Why don't you go talk to her?"

Helena hesitated, leaning into Myka for several minutes before standing and walking out of the room. She made her way to Claudia's room, lightly knocking on the door.

"Yeah?" Claudia asked, opening the door. She raised an eyebrow, not expecting to see Helena standing there. She unconsciously tensed and avoided her mentor's dark eyes as she waited for an explanation.

"Might we talk for a moment, Claudia?" Helena asked quietly.

Claudia hesitated; "Maybe later, I'm kinda busy at the minute." she lied, turning away.

Helena gently stopped her by putting a hand on her shoulder, noticing at how the young redhead tensed and flinched at the contact.

"Please. I assure you it shall not take more than a moment." she said softly. She was beginning to suspect that Myka had been spot on with her guess.

Claudia hesitated a moment longer, then sighed, "Alright."

* * *

Meanwhile, Leena walked into the living room, overhearing Christina talking to someone. She'd heard mention that the girl had a unique skill that involved seeing things and talking to things that weren't there. Or rather, things that _were_ there that other people couldn't see.

She watched curiously from the doorframe before walking further into the room, sitting down on the sofa.

"Oh, good evening Leena." Christina said politely.

"Good evening." Leena smiled, "Who were you talking to?"

Christina shifted uncomfortably and said, "No one. I was simply muttering to myself. It is a rather bad habit of mine."

Leena could tell that discussing it was uncomfortable, and reflected back on her own childhood when she'd tried making people understand her ability of seeing auras. She knew how hard it was to make people know that she wasn't crazy and had a real gift, and hoped that she could help the young girl out in that regard.

Leena smiled, "William mentioned before that you have a unique gift. I do as well. I can see and read peoples auras." she said, noticing that Christina seemed interested now, "I know that it's difficult talking about seeing things that others can't. It makes you sound crazy." she continued gently.

Christina nodded, "Indeed it does." she agreed, feeling a bit more at ease with the innkeeper.

Leena smiled, "What do you see?" she asked.

* * *

Helena smiled, following as Claudia made her way to her bed where a piece of machinery lay discarded.

Looking at it curiously, the Victorian woman asked, "What are you working on, Claudia?"

Claudia shrugged, sitting in the middle of the bed with her knees against her chest, her arms lightly resting around her knees as she rested her chin on her arm, "It's nothing." she said, "Soooo…. what do ya wanna talk about?"

Helena sat on the edge of the bed, taking a moment to gather her thoughts before speaking, "I am sorry, Claudia."

Claudia blinked, having not expected that, "What're you sorry for?" she asked, looking at her mentor properly now as she shifted to sit cross-legged, raising her eyebrow in confusion.

Helena met her eyes evenly, "I fear that due to the chaotic events of this week I may have seemed as though I have been neglecting you. This was not my intention, though I know you've felt that way, and for that I am sorry, Claudia."

Claudia sighed, rubbing the back of her neck, "Nah, dude. I mean, I guess things have been pretty crazy lately. I-I've been acting stupid, I mean it's your daughter afterall..."

"Nonsense." Helena argued gently, "You do not wish to be cast out or replaced, it is quite understandable. However, I do hope you are aware that no matter whom may be occupying my time, you shall never be forgotten, darling. I often find myself these days thinking of you as a kind of adopted daughter as well as a protégé." she admitted, having never mentioned that before, unaware that the same was true of the young woman sat before her.

"Really?" Claudia asked, surprised at that. **_The_** H.G. Wells thought of her as an adopted daughter?

Helena smiled and nodded, "Is this a problem?" she asked.

Claudia shook her head, "Nah, its fine. I kinda like the idea of bein the adopted kid of one of the world's greatest minds." she said with a smirk.

Helena chuckled at that, happy that she was able to put the young girl's mind at ease. Claudia hesitated, and then scooted over to hug the older woman. Helena smiled, returning the gesture. After a moment, they pulled back and Claudia leaned over to grab the discarded piece of what she was working on, offering it to her mentor to look at.

Helena took the device, looking it over curiously, "What does it do?" she asked.

"Supposed to be a new kinda toaster since Leena's is kinda… busted, but its not really working properly yet." Claudia said.

Helena tilted her head, "Leena's toasting device is broken?" she asked, having seen it working just that morning.

Claudia rubbed the back of her head, "Yeeeah lets just say I think Leena's gonna put a sign up to ban all Victorians from messing with her appliances." she said before explaining in detail how her 'Victorian-safe' device was made and what the problem was. Inventing and tinkering with machines was always their unique way of bonding.

* * *

Christina hesitated, and then looked at the innkeeper evenly. She hoped that this woman might really understand, at least a bit better than others could.

"…Ever since I was brought back to life, I've been able to see and speak with spirits." she said quietly, "Souls of the dead that haven't yet crossed over to the other side for various reasons. It's because of this that I often can help out with an artifact-related death. It makes life easier when one can simply ask the victim what had transpired." she said, watching Leena's reaction carefully.

Leena was surprised at the gift being described, but nodded, "That sounds quite fascinating." she admitted, curious to hear more about it.

"I suppose." Christina shrugged, "Though most simply deem me crazy when I try to explain how I know things that I should not. William is accepting enough, and I thank him for that, though I know that he cannot truly understand what transpires."

Leena nodded, "I understand." she said, "Who were you speaking to just now?" she asked curiously.

"He said his name was Jack." Christina said quietly, "He was surprised that I could see him, and said he was looking for somebody called Rebecca…"

* * *

The next morning, as promised, Artie allowed Christina to accompany the team to the Warehouse. When they got there, the young girl was put on inventory along with William, Pete, Steve, Helena, and Myka, being given a list of stuff that she could handle with just one hand. Now that they had two more people working they were actually starting to catch up on putting things away.

Claudia stayed with Artie and Trailer in the office in case they finally had a ping.

Claudia sighed, "Ok this is frakkin weird… why has there been nothing in almost two weeks? I mean, that's like some kinda Warehouse record!"

"Not quite. Try 3 years for the current record." Artie grunted.

Claudia raised an eyebrow, "Seriously…?"

Artie nodded, not stopping what he was doing.

"Think there might be somethin wrong with the football? I mean, could it have broken after slamming into the Warehouse… frak knows how many times?" Claudia asked.

Artie shook his head, "Doubtful..." he said, though he sounded unconvinced of his own words, "Though I'll check it when it comes back again."

Claudia nodded, looking at Artie.

He noticed and glanced at her, "What?"

"What do you think will happen if the Regents… don't let Christina and William stay here?" she asked quietly, having been concerned about that.

Artie shook his head, not wanting to imagine the uproar that that would cause, "Let's just hope they do." he sighed, "For our sake as well as Helena's."

* * *

Down on the Warehouse floor, the agents had separated to complete their required lists of inventory. Christina and William had gone off on their own to work. Helena seemed to not want to put her daughter out of sight again, but William assured her that Christina was more than able to handle herself. She was trained by Caturanga afterall. Christina immediately loved this new Warehouse, as it was vastly larger than Warehouse 12.

She was happy to be back where she felt she belonged. She'd brought along a bottle of water and her medicine in a small bag that Claudia had given her, in case her hand started hurting too badly, though the tender injury had been healing nicely and the pain was dimming every day.

She looked at William, smiling, "What do you think, William?"

"About what exactly, my dear?" William asked, putting a toy ball on a shelf.

"All of this, and everything that has happened. Are you happy you decided to come with me?" Christina asked, handing him a small wooden block next to be put away.

William smiled, "This new world is rather overwhelming, and quite advanced compared to what we are used to, but yes. I am quite happy I came with you to find your mother." he said, nodding.

"I do wonder what became of the old man though." Christina said, moving right along with the inventory as they talked.

"I do not know. I doubt they did anything too terrible, he was very old, but _very_ valuable." William said, taking the next item from her to be put on the shelf.

Christina nodded and looked down the hall, pausing as she saw another spirit.

William noticed her gaze and tilted his head, "What do you see?" he asked.

"An old woman. How odd." she said, making a mental note to speak with her after they were done working.

Mrs. Frederic watched quietly from the other end of the hall, nodding to herself before she vanished again.

* * *

When the day drew to a close, the agents made there way to Artie's office.

"Where's Christina?" Helena asked when they'd reached the base of the staircase, noticing that William had returned without her daughter.

"Not to worry, she's quite fine. She will be along in a moment." William said, glancing over his shoulder, "She was simply... er... well, using her unique skill again, shall we say."

Myka raised an eyebrow, "Seeing and talking to… spirits?"

Leena had pulled her and Helena aside earlier that morning and shared what she'd learned. Really it was no stranger than seeing auras or feeling vibes or knowing when people were lying but somehow seeing ghosts was a bit harder to believe to someone who prided herself on logic.

William nodded, rubbing his neck, "Yes. I know how it looks and sounds but she is quite sane, I assure you. The reason she is late is because she mentioned seeing an old woman while doing today's work and wanted to speak with her."

Even Helena was more than a little skeptical at the prospect, being a woman of science. Though she had to admit they'd seen far stranger in their day, and it was quite a challenge to use 'Warehouse' and 'science' in the same sentence.

A few minutes later, Christina walked towards the staircase. The young girl seemed rather pleased with herself.

Seeing William, Helena, and Myka she smiled, "I like this new Warehouse."

Helena smiled, "It's quite different from Warehouse 12, isn't it?" she said.

Christina nodded, "It is." she agreed.

William looked at her, "Did you find out about that old woman?" he asked. Seeing her glance at Myka and Helena awkwardly he added, "They know what you can do."

Christina nodded, still seeming a bit uncomfortable, "I did, and she said that her name was Rebecca. She voluntarily died here in the Warehouse over 2 years ago while using a time machine and was looking for Jack. I saw someone named Jack last night at Leena's, and so told her that, and she left to go find him."

Helena and Myka looked at eachother, both wearing equally surprised expressions. There was no way that the girl would have known all of that, and they didn't think anyone told her. Maybe she really could see ghosts?

Just then Pete and Steve walked in as well, talking about pizzas. The agents all climbed the staircase to Artie's office, eager to get home to eat and rest.

"Settling in well then?"

Everyone jumped to hear Mrs. Frederic. They turned to see her and Mr. Kosan stood near the doorway where they'd just come from.

Mr. Kosan looked at them calmly, "The Regents have come to a decision." he said.

Artie and Claudia stood to join the others as everyone awaited the news.

"William Wolcott, and Christina Wells, are to be fully reinstated as a Warehouse agent, and Warehouse apprentice." he said, stepping forward to hand them both a badge, "From this day forward you will address yourselves as U.S. Federal Agents. Welcome back."

Claudia jumped up and cheered at the news, quickly followed by everyone else as they welcomed their official new teammates.

Mr. Kosan looked at Christina calmly, "Your ability in particular, Ms. Wells, will come in handy. Use it well." he said.

Christina smiled shyly and nodded, "I shall."

Mrs. Frederic looked at Artie, handing him the Long-Distance Football, "I believe you'll find this is back in working order. We seem to have a backlog as of now. This will be rectified starting tomorrow" she said calmly, glancing at the group of agents.

The Caretaker walked up to Helena, "As for your act of insubordination, Agent Wells, you will be grounded and only allowed to do inventory for the following 6 months. No missions. No experiments. No inventions. Only inventory." she said calmly.

Helena blinked, "No experiments or inventions? What the bloody hell would **_that_** accomplish?" she asked. While inventory was extremely boring, she'd gladly do that for making Taka suffer, but no experiments or tinkering?

"It would accomplish teaching you a lesson, Agent Wells. I expect _complete _cooperation or the time limit will be extended." Mrs. Frederic said evenly.

Helena looked like she wanted to argue, but wisely bit back her words and nodded, "Fine."

Mr, Kosan looked back to Christina, "It may be wise to explain the nature of your gift to your teammates." he suggested, causing everyone in the room to turn their attention to her. Many of them had been curious, but hadn't asked out of respect for the fact that the young girl was still recovering and hadn't yet been made an official part of the team.

Christina shifted uncomfortably, but nodded, "Probably, though perhaps later on after dinner?" she suggested. She wasn't sure that this lot would be accepting of her like William and Leena were, and the thought made her a bit anxious about explaining her ability.

"Food is a good plan, I like that plan." Pete said, walking towards the door as most of the others agreed and followed.

Claudia noticed that the other girl seemed nervous and lightly put a hand on her shoulder, smiling, "No worries, we've seen plenty of weird things, I doubt anthin you can do would be that surprising."

Christina smiled politely and nodded, though she still wasn't sure. Though she figured she would have to tell them at some point.

* * *

"So wait… you're saying you see ghosts?" Pete asked, raising an eyebrow.

Christina nodded, "For lack of better terminology, yes." she said, explaining it the same way she'd explained it to Leena.

"Ghosts do not exist." Artie said firmly, not buying it. He had seen many things in his long lifetime, but he had never had any proof that ghosts were anything more than a myth.

"Yeeeah I'm gonna hafta side with grandpa on that one. There's no way someone could see ghosts." Pete said, rubbing the back of his neck.

Leena stepped in then, giving Pete an unusually intense stare, "Why not? I see auras and no one else can. Does that mean they don't exist?" she challenged firmly.

Pete put his hands up in defense, not used to Leena challenging him, "Auras don't try to kill people, Leena. Or make lights go all weird or crawl out of TVs to eat people's souls."

Christina had to laugh then, "Dear lord they're not like in folklore." she said calmly, "Spirits can't do anything at all, not even lift things or make lights flicker. That is simply the stuff of old bedtime tales. Spirits can only observe the world around them and speak with one another, and speak with those among the living who can see and hear them until they cross over to the other side."

"And just what's on the 'other side'?" Artie asked dryly, still not believing a word of it.

Christina shrugged, "I don't know really. I'm not there, nor can I see it, nor can I remember it from my own time as a spirit."

Steve looked at Artie, "She's telling the truth." he said, "Every word. Though… I was brought back with the metronome too and I can't see ghosts."

Christina shrugged, "As I have heard, I was dead far longer than you, Mr. Jinks. Perhaps that is why. Or perhaps it is because you already have a gift. Who knows?"

"I believe her." Myka said after a minute.

Claudia nodded, "I do too. I mean we've seen stranger things in this line of work. He gets vibes, he sees lies, she sees auras…" she said, pointing to each in turn, "Mrs. Frederic teleports and reads minds, so why shouldn't it be possible to see ghosts? Especially if they're not really creepy killers like in movies."

"Thank you." Christina said quietly, thankful that not everyone was against her. Looking to Helena she asked, "Mum…?"

Helena hesitated, not really sure weather to believe her daughter or not, though she remembered that even the Regents believed it. Plus what Claudia had said was quite true; she'd seen firsthand abilities that defy every law of science. After a few minutes, she nodded, "I believe you, darling."

One by one everyone except Artie agreed that this ability, though odd due to their movie-based views on ghosts, wasn't the first supernatural ability they'd seen.

Artie just grumbled about there being lots of work in the morning and went upstairs as everyone else decided to accept the young Englishwoman's story. He'd need a lot of convincing and proof before he accepted that there might be such a thing as spirits of the dead.

Only Leena could see that he was secretly afraid of ghosts.

* * *

I got the idea for Christina's gift after rewatching Season 4 Episode 10, with that bit where Pete was seeing the ghost and thought that'd be a pretty neat ability minus the awkwardness of looking like your talking to no one XD

Also as I said in chapter...3 i think?... the bit between Helena and Claudia was inspired by _I Wear The Crown_'s comment :) So thanks again for the unintentional help, LOL!

Reviews are love :)

-Akito


	11. Looking Towards The Future

**Epilogue: Looking Towards The Future**

As the months went on, Christina and William became more and more at home at Leenas, at the Warehouse, and in the 21st century in general. They both had been allowed to get their things out of the Escher Vault, which wasn't really much.

Christina had a necklace that Nikola had given her as a birthday gift one year, and an old Chinese Go set that Caturanga had given her long ago, despite how she could never beat him in that, or chess, or any other puzzle strategy game. It was a unique hand-crafted board with stones of polished obsidian and ivory, and she was happy that it had been kept in the vault for her. William only had an old pocket watch that Helena had given him when he completed a particular mission in 1895.

She had been surprised that he'd kept it all this time, having only given it to him as a joke due to how he had been late in arriving to the scene of the incident, which had inadvertently saved Helena's life as they'd later found out.

Though the two newcomers were still confused by many modern technologies, Claudia had made a point to teach them all about television and cars and appliances and indoor electricity and everything else she thought they needed to know about.

While Helena was grounded from missions, William went out after artifacts with Pete and Myka, and Christina had started going out after them with Steve and Claudia once her finger was completely healed.

The digit was still tender in a few spots, though it was usable again and didn't require pain medicine or bandages. Helena had been extremely anxious the first several times that Christina had been out on assignment, though she was slowly learning to calm down and focus on her own work, particularly after Mrs. Frederic had spoken to her about her nonstop worry.

Christina still called her mother on the Farnsworth every few hours just to check in and assure her that she was fine and that she could handle herself in the field.

Artie was still a bit wary around Christina due to her gift, but he had to admit that though she'd been an apprentice of Warehouse 13 only a short time, she hadn't forgotten her training from Warehouse 12 and was a very skilled young woman when it came to snagging, bagging, and tagging.

One evening, Artie was sat in his office, trying to ignore a very grumpy Helena, who was still annoyed that she'd been banned from experimenting even though her 'prison sentence' was nearly up.

After she left to go back down to the Warehouse floor, Mrs. Frederic appeared next to Artie, though he didn't jump quite as hard as he normally did.

"How are they doing?" she inquired.

"William and Christina? They're doing fine. Better than fine actually, they're both really good at this job." Artie said, looking at her.

Mrs. Frederic nodded, "The apprentices in particular… do you think they are ready?" she asked.

Artie raised an eyebrow, "Ready for…? Oh… OH." he said, realizing what she meant.

He thought about it for a moment, mentally reviewing Claudia's field performance before his thoughts shifted to Christina's. Though the young Englishwoman had only been under his observation for a few months, he felt confident in her skills.

Turning back to Mrs. Frederic, he nodded, "Yeah. I think they're ready."

**-TO BE CONTINUED-**

* * *

Wheeeee we are DONE for now 8D First non-commissioned story I've finished in aaaaages 3

SO my final question to you lot, which directly affects the next installment [which I've already started the first draft of], is Claudia still considered an apprentice or a full agent? I hadn't quite been able to figure that out. In season 2 they kept calling her an apprentice but in seasons 3 and 4 I don't recall if she moved up in rank or not. Not sure.

Well anyway, the next story as of right now is called **Final Exam** and will focus primarily on Christina and Claudia.

That's all for now!

-Akito


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